Legend of Tal
by Infinity WEAPON
Summary: A young Umbreon begins an epic journey across the world, and along the way manages to uncover his past. Violence, coarse language. Re-writes planned!
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

Somewhere, I heard a bell ring. The breakfast bell. I opened my eyes groggily, to see my roommates Spine and Ritch leaving for breakfast without me. _Well, _I thought. _Time to get up. _I rose, stretching my legs, and yawning. Spine, a Jolteon, looked back at me with disinterest. "Better hurry, Umbreon," He said. "If your late you don't get breakfast."

I sighed, and ran to catch up to them. Ritch, a Flareon, eyed me with distaste. "When was the last time you had a bath, Tal?" he inquired. I grunted, and shook myself to get my fur back into line. I was hungry, so I ran ahead to the dining hall. I found a table and some berries, and sat down to eat alone yet again. Something about being a loner turns people away from me. Ironic, I know.

I only managed to eat one berry before someone decided to bother me. Typical. An Espeon, with an oddly green-tinted tail was headed straight for me. Female, slightly smaller than average, and oddly green eyes as well. A regular target for bullies. Why she was headed to me, I had no idea, but I could guess that she, like many others, had fallen for my good looks and amazing charm. I'm not even being ironic or funny here, they actually find me attractive! Seriously, what the hell? I sighed, resigning myself to an hour of hell. Way to ruin my day.

She seemed different, though. Maybe she wasn't here to tell me that "I look nice in this light", or that "I have nice fur". That kind of stuff aggravated me beyond anything else. According to Instructor Leafeon, it was because I was an Umbreon. Apparently, because we are faster, stronger, and more cunning than other breeds, we are ideal as mates. So they don't actually like _me_, they like what I am.

She was definitely too serious to be asking me out on a date, so I let her get a little closer.

EVE Academy, the diverse place that it was, is the only training are for wild Pokémon that accepts Pokémon of any element. That said, it only accepts Eveelutions. It's population is about 70% Jolteons, Flareons, and Vaporeons, 5% Glaceons and Leafeons, 24.5% Espeons, and .5% Umbreons. That is to say, just me.

I managed to finish another berry before she sat down. I eyed her distrustfully, but she seemed to confident to ignore. "So, what do you want?" I asked. She smirked. "I have something that you don't want to turn down. A mission." _Just great._ "You and me have orders to catch some runaway. You, me, and some friends are going to Kanto to catch him. Be at the front gate bright and early tomorrow."

She strolled off, leaving me to finish my breakfast. Unfortunately, the training bell sounded, so I was forced to leave hungry. _A mission, huh? Well this might be interesting, but what's the catch? _I wondered to myself.


	2. The Beginning

**I just want to note that this is still a sort of Prologue, the main story is yet to start. But some of the characters introduced in this chapter will have significance later in the story.**

* * *

**Chapter 1: The beginning**

I was excused from training for the day, which meant I was free to do whatever I wanted for the day. I went to the mission room, near the gates of EVE Academy. The mission roster, which was updated daily, showed who was going on a mission, where and when it would take place, and special equipment assigned to the participants. I was mildly surprised to see Ritch on the list, assigned to my party. A Vaporeon, named Null, was also going on our mission.

And most surprisingly, we were getting special equipment. Ritch and Null were getting power enhancers, a Charcoal, and a Mystic Water, the Espeon, Hazle, was being given a Quick Claw, and I got Choice Specs. Decent equipment for my first mission. I decided that I needed to rest, to conserve my energy for tomorrow, so I decided not to do anything that required any sort of effort.

I took a walk around the Academy, which was about 3 km in diameter, so the walk was roughly nine and a half kilometres. Even walking slowly (for me, anyway), I still walked it in less than an hour. Since that would obviously not keep me interested for long, I decided to venture out of the Academy grounds, and into EVE proper.

EVE was a huge area of land, owned by several Eveelutions, and their families. They had pooled their land many years ago, after the human populations began to thin in Johto and Kanto, and adopted a common name. Since all of us started as Eevees, the name fit perfectly. EVE expanded slowly over the course of many years, until human interference stopped it.

Since many other Pokémon nations wanted EVE's land for themselves, we fight constant political battles, and sometimes physical ones. So, EVE opened an Academy, and hired some of the best fighters our nation had to offer to train recruits. Others saw this as a threat, and began their own training programs. But we had something that they didn't. They focused their resources on training only one type of Pokémon, while we had many types, from Water to Fire, Dark to Ice. A total of seven different types, which gave us the distinct tactical advantage.

As such, others began to back off, began to rethink their own strategy. Unfortunately for them, they did not trust any other types, so they could not work efficiently with them. This gave us an even larger advantage. In the end, most of them backed off.

Two notable exceptions: Electrics and Bugs. They actually accelerated their training programs, attacked us more frequently, and began to halt our travels through their lands. There were even rumours that the Bugs were amassing an army to invade us outright.

I walked into the untamed grassland around my home, the grass taller than I was, and began to search for berries. They grew wild in this area, one of the main reasons that we had made the Academy in this particular area. Easy access to food. There was also a network of caves beneath the Academy, which were used as housing for any militia in the area, as well as the Instructors, the Senior Trainees, and for storing food and equipment.

I found a large Oran bush after a half an hour, but by then I was far too hungry to be satisfied by just those five berries. I ate them hastily, as anything could sneak up on me in the tall grass. When they were finished, I searched around for more.

Before I could find any other bushes, I heard a noise from behind me. A twig snapping. I whirled around, and found nothing. Another twig snapped, behind me again. I turned again, and nothing was there. _What the hell? _I though to myself. Another, different sound came from behind again. The sound of someone landing and jumping. I looked up to late, the Scyther already to close for me to counter it.

It slashed me in the flank, and I fell back, barely dodging its second attack. I retreated slowly, keeping my eyes fixed on it. My second mistake. Another Scyther pounced on me from behind, slashing me multiple times in the back._ Fury cutter._ I groaned. These two were very experienced, and they had disabled my ability to retreat almost right away. With me losing this much blood, I couldn't fight, and I couldn't run. I was freaking screwed.

I was to far away to call for help, so I tried to surrender. All that got me was a cut on my face, right over my eye. I was too fatigued to move at this point, even standing up was difficult to manage. I managed a weak scream for help, but I was to far gone for anything else. I sank to the ground before my vision faded and I saw nothing more. _Son of a-_

…...…..

I opened my eyes, which in and of itself was a surprise, to see a human standing over me. My left eye was covered in blood, but I was alive. The human looked concerned about my injuries, but he was making no move to help me. I looked around a little more, and saw a Dragonite, a Feraligator, and a Toxicroak lounging a short distance away. They radiated power.

The human, who had decided what to do, reached into his backpack to grab something. When his hand emerged, he was holding a small, rectangular object, with a small strip of green near the top. It had a small opening at the top, along with a small button on the side.

My legs still would not move for me, and when I looked down, I saw that the grass around me was soaked with blood. I felt a liquid spray against my wounds, and they began to heal unnaturally fast. The human sprayed his healing concoction (A full restore) on all my cuts, including my eye. He finished quickly, and with a nod to his Pokémon, he began to walk away. The Toxicroak walked up to me, and I began to feel lethargic. Moments later, I fall asleep.

…

I woke up late in the night, nearing dawn, and struggled to stand up. Blood loss had weakened me beyond what I could compensate for, and standing seemed harder than anything I had ever done before. I knew that there was no way I could go on a mission now, I'd be lucky if I was out of the infirmary in the next week. My hopes crushed, I sank back to the ground.

But, moments later, another sound invaded my rest. I looked up to see another Umbreon standing next to me. He was staring at me with contempt. After a moment, he began to walk away. He walked awkwardly, as if he had a leg injury. That was when I noticed his strange colouring. He was black, like all Umbreons, but his rings were blue. He looked back at me, and I noticed he had yellow eyes. My own eyes, all Umbreons' eyes, were red. This guy was not normal.

I felt a mysterious strength flood into my body, and I rose to follow the mystery Umbreon. He walked far too quickly for a cripple, so I knew that he was not what he seemed to be. I followed him blindly for a long time, him always one step ahead of me, until he simply disappeared. He walked through a particularly dense patch of grass, and when I stepped through it, he was gone. I had no idea how far I was from the Academy, or even if I was still in EVE land.

Luckily for me, the stranger had walked in the general direction of the Academy. I could see it, about a kilometre away. I sighed, and began to walk toward it. This had been one messed up day.

* * *

**List of new characters: Ethan (the human), those Scythers will also return, and blueringy is central to the plot.**


	3. To Journey Forth

**Chapter 2: To journey forth…**

I had reached the Academy gates just before we were scheduled to leave, with Null and Hazle already waiting for me and Ritch. There was a small pouch on Null's leg, likely holding her Mystic Water, and two similar pouches were lying on the ground next to her. Hazle was looking at me like I had something on my face._ Well, the scar over my eye is new, I guess. _Null, who had not met me before, was sizing me up, guessing just how strong I was. I looked down, I wasn't strong enough.

Hazle, as if reading my thoughts, walked over to me. "What the hell happened to you?" she asked me. "You know," I said. "I tripped over a rock, landed on a large pile of rocks." She frowned, started to say something, but she stopped herself. "Just watch where you're going, okay?" she said after a moment.

Null motioned for me to take something, a small pair of glasses. Choice Specs. I put them on, keeping them above my eyes, back near my ears. I felt slightly more powerful.

Ritch decided to arrive exactly on time, a first for him, and proceeded to scoop up one of the pouches. He opened it, it contained a Charcoal. The little bugger always knew what was his. Hazle took the last pouch, and we started out the gates.

….

After an hour of walking, we made it to the EVE border, fifty kilometres from the Academy. We were all exhausted by then, so Null, the newly appointed team leader, called a stop to our march. "We need to be rested for tomorrow. We'll be going into hostile territory." She said. Ritch went straight to sleep, Null stood watch, and Hazle and I went to find food.

We had walked only a few moments when she pounced on me, pinning me to the ground. "Alright," she said. "What really happened to you?" I sighed, and repeated the same story I had told her before. She saw through my ruse. "Rocks wouldn't cause these injuries, and wounds of this size wouldn't heal that quickly. You're hiding something, Tal." I sighed. "If it's that important to you, I was attacked." She gasped, stepping back. "But, you weren't, they, HOW FAR DID YOU GO?" she almost screamed the last words at me. I rolled my eyes, so she HAD fallen for my good looks. Just great. "If you must know, I went FURTHER into EVE lands. They must have been looking for me." She regained most of her composure, enough to roll her eyes, chuckle, and ask why anyone would be searching for me.

I decided that I wasn't hungry and started to walk back to Null. Hazle stopped me. "I'm sorry," she said. "For being so nosey, but…..I'm worried about you." I brushed her off, and started to walk faster. She chased me. I smiled evilly, and began to run. She tried to follow me, but like I said earlier, I am faster, stronger, and wittier than the other breeds. She never had a chance of keeping up.

I slowed before getting to close to Null and the sleeping Ritch, seeing if I could get past Ms. Super watchdog. She had her back turned to me, and I walked as stealthily as I could. I stopped less than a meter from her, and just before I could say anything, she spoke. "I know you're there, genius. You're very, very loud." I sighed, and settled down to sleep.

….

I woke up later, and looked around. Everyone else was asleep. Even Null, who was on watch. I looked around a little more, and saw a strangely familiar blue glow. A figure stepped through the grass cover, an Umbreon. An Umbreon with blue rings. "You again!" He smiled, motioned for me to follow. I had other ideas.

He had next to insulted me earlier, adding insult to injury, so I wanted revenge. He had obviously Hypnotized the others, Null would be awake if he hadn't. They wouldn't wake up, no matter what I did, so I decided to even the score.

I launched a Shadow ball at him, and used Faint Attack to get behind him. Whether he saw the attack coming or not, it had no effect. I tackled him, but I seemed to bounce off. He turned, and I felt myself fly through the air. I hit a tree a good sixty feet away, with a very obnoxious crunching noise. I fell to the ground, unable to get up as he walked toward me. He stood there, looking at me with the same mocking look he'd worn before. "W-who are y-you?"

….

I woke sometime later, not even aware that I had fallen unconscious. I was lying quite far from the tree I had been slammed against, so I logically concluded that the Umbreon had attacked me again. My vision was covered in red, he'd popped one of my eyes' blood vessels. I groaned, trying to stand, but not succeeding. Ritch was standing over me, looking over my various bruises and cuts, evidence of the fight I had lost. He sighed, and walked away, not aware that I was conscious.

Hazle and Null were examining the tree with the me-sized dent in it, more evidence of my weakness. I groaned again, still incapable of talking, as Ritch began to talk to the girls. My ears were broken, I couldn't hear anything. I tried to drag myself towards them, but my legs wouldn't work either. So I did the first thing I thought of. I shot a shadow ball at the tree. It exploded, taking the tree with it, knocking Ritch and Hazle back. Null seemed untroubled by it. Null came over to me, an unimpressed look on her face. "Nice try, newbie, but you need to practice more to make me flinch."

I sighed, all the while replaying the battle in my head, and vowing to get revenge. How had I been beaten so easily? That…thing was certainly not an Umbreon. It was far too powerful, and it had used moves no Umbreon could master. The question was, what was it? I groaned, struggling to rise, yet my legs continued to betray me. They weren't broken, but they would not move. Maybe, just maybe, that thing had broken my spine.

Yet I could move my body, shaking it, so I wasn't paralyzed by injury, maybe just fatigue. It had been a long day. I closed my eyes, using will alone to shift my legs. They shifted, but did not move fully. I sighed, resigning myself to my temporary paralysis. Null nudged me with her foot. "Get up, newbie. We're leaving, and we will leave you here if we have to." I groaned again, tried moving my legs again, but I couldn't.

Hazle walked over, more concerned than Null, and began to examine me extensively, wasting little time in getting a somewhat extensive report on my injuries. About a hundred cuts and bruises, temporary paralysis, and one of my scars had reopened, the reason my sight was tinged with red. I was incapable of movement; most of my muscles had been torn, so I was going to be off my feet for a long time. The mission was over for me.

I sensed more than heard the approach of a certain human a few moments later. Null was deciding what to do about me, conversing with herself as much as the others. The same human who had found me earlier had stumbled into me yet again. Null and Ritch went into a defensive stance, both had been abused by humans sometime in their life. Hazle just stared. The human, just a boy really, sighed. "You have a knack for hurting yourself." He said in his language. I nodded. He smiled, and before anyone could stop him, he threw something at me.

For a moment, I was scared it was a Pokéball, but it turned out to be a berry. "That's a Lum berry, sure to cure any ailment. Eat it before your condition gets even worse." I nodded again, eating the berry. It was disgusting, hard, and dry, very, very dry. There was almost no moisture in it. Yet the moment I swallowed it, I felt better. I tried to stand, and this time it actually worked. I groaned, the blood rushing out of my head. I was so dizzy that I fell over again.

I noticed his three Pokémon behind him, the Dragonite hovering in the air, the Toxicroak lying down, and the Feraligator just standing there. The human turned, signalling his Dragonite. It flew up into the air, disappearing behind the clouds. The human winked at me, before walking away. His Pokémon continued to watch me for a moment, before they, to, walked away.

I continued to look at the point that they had been standing, long enough that Hazle had to shake me to get me to move. Even then, it took an effort to tear my eyes from that spot. Looking up, I could see the Dragonite, which was likely watching me as well. I looked back towards the tree I had destroyed, and began to walk. I really didn't care where I walked to, just that I get away from where I was.

….

I kept walking until late in the evening, and I looked back to see that they had followed me. Ritch, Hazle, even Null, who claimed not to like me. "We're just heading in the same direction" was her excuse. I smiled, looking around for a place to rest. There was a small cave just over a small ridge, hard to get to, easy to protect. Which meant that anything could be in there.

I went in first, my rings providing enough light for me to see. There was a small family of Rattata at the back of the cave, but there was nothing that posed a threat. The cave turned out to be a tunnel, which lead very deep into the ground. It seemed safe, so I called the others in, and made a quick deal with the Rattata. We get to stay here for a night, and they get to live. They were quick to agree.

Null, who was a veteran of many missions, was cautious when entering the cave, looking around at every rock and pebble in the place. When she was satisfied that we would be safe, she called Ritch and Hazle in.

The three of them left me on watch, and quickly fell asleep. I kept an eye on the Rattata, and my ears on the world beyond the cave. Unfortunately, the one person I was listening for was still silent, walking without noise. I glanced toward the cave mouth, and saw Him. He stood there, watching me. I felt anger well up inside me, begging me to attack him. But I didn't want to end up hurt again. So, we stood there, staring at each other, neither of us willing to back down.

Our staring match lasted well through the night, into the dawn. When Hazle began to stir, He simply left. But he smirked before he did, he wanted me to know that I had lost.

It was time to go, and Null was angry at me. Angry that I had spent the entire night awake, not giving watch to anyone else. I was going to state that I was never tired at night, a consequence of my genetics, but I thought better of it at the last moment. Let her vent, I wasn't tired. She continued to go on about how I weakened the strength of the group if I was lethargic in battle, how I would become a liability.

Eventually, I lost my patience, and left the cave. BlueRings had been nice enough to leave tracks for me to follow, so I quickly picked up the scent, and began to follow him.

The tracks went for about three kilometres, well beyond where Null was willing to go, so I went in alone. Or so I thought. After I had reached the end, I turned back, only to see Hazle, standing right in front of me. I sighed, beginning to regret leaving the Academy in the first place. "I was just wondering where you were going," she said. "Admit it," I said. "You've fallen head over heels for me." She growled, not liking that I'd found her out.

We headed back towards Null, after the trail went cold. We found her very close to where we had left her, proving that she was reluctant to let me go. I smiled, poking fun at her. "Did you miss me?" She growled a warning. I looked around for Ritch, surprised that he wasn't there. "He left about an hour ago." Null explained. "He wasn't as patient as I am." I rolled my eyes. Ritch was known for staring at a block of wood for an hour without getting bored. He was also great at staring contests.

That's when we heard him scream. "SON OF A-"

We rushed over to where the scream came from, and found a very not pretty scene.

* * *

**Ooh, a cliffhanger! What has Ritch gotten himself into this time? Also, Woot! 2,206 words! **


	4. The End of Ritch

**Ha! 2,556 words in a day! Have fun eith this chapter, I finally got the plot moving foreward! Oh, and if you are meek, scared of blood, this is a bad chapter for you to read.**

* * *

**Chapter 3: The End of Ritch**

Ritch was standing, bloodied, shaken, and upset, on a pile of corpses. Twenty or so Bug Pokémon, charred, and dead, were lying all over the place, killed by Ritch. He was panting, and it wasn't hard to figure why. He had cuts all over his legs, sides, and face, and he was holding one of his legs off the ground. It was broken. He was seriously hurt, probably dying, and we couldn't help him.

For once, the human didn't show up to save us, when we needed him more than ever. I knew that the Dragonite was watching, but that didn't mean that the human was near.

There were still two Scythers standing, neither seriously injured. They were grinning maniacally at me, and they seemed very familiar. They were the ones who had attacked me. I felt a familiar rage well up inside me. I sent another Shadow Ball towards them, catching one off guard, and hitting him in the chest. The other looked at me, unfazed by my show of power. He jumped at me, soaring high into the air. Then, time seemed to slow.

Began to fall slowly, and I looked behind me, hearing a sound I had been fearing for a long time. He was back, sitting in a tree. He winked at me, before disappearing again.

I turned back to my foe, who was considerably closer to me than before. I felt an unfamiliar power gather inside me. I opened my mouth, and the power converged there, forming a sphere of energy. It grew larger than my head, pure power. I was running on instinct, I had no idea what was going to happen next. The sphere expanded, before shooting out a massive beam of energy at the Scyther. He disappeared in the wave of power. _Hyper Beam._

I knew there were more of them, waiting just outside of my sight. Dozens of them. I don't know how I knew they were there, I just _knew._ My suspicions turned out to be correct when several Skorupi scuttled out of the bushes, doing their best to look fierce.

When Ritch saw them, he went very close to berserk. "WHERE THE HELL IS HE?" he yelled, over and over, while literally tearing the poor things limb from limb. I called out to him, but he didn't seem to hear me. After the bugs were dead, he continued to look around crazily. "ANYONE ELSE?" he screamed. I saw a murderous look in his eyes; he was fully prepared to kill anything that came forward. I heard several Scorupi run away, along with a few Scythers. I saw a splotch of red come forward, however, and as it got closer, it resolved into a Scizor. It was covered in scratches and scars; it was obviously an experienced fighter. Way out of Ritch's league.

Yet he still attacked it, throwing every last ounce of energy he had into an Eruption, spewing flames all over the place. The Scizor just shrugged of the flames, walking unfazed through the wall of flames between him and Ritch. Ritch sent a Flame Wheel towards the Scizor, which also bounced off, similar to the first attack. It decided to counter-attack after that attack.

The Scizor jumped into the air, and the moment it hit the ground, it disappeared. I heard a crash, a slice, and a yelp, before realizing that it had used Aerial Ace, and turn to see it toss the now unconscious Ritch to the side, showing no signs of strain when lifting the fifty pound Pokémon. Ritch landed with a dull thump.

The Scizor, obviously not finished with us, turned to face me next. I knew that I wouldn't stand a chance, Ritch had a massive type advantage and he had lost, so what chance did I have? Never the less, I prepared to fight him, adjusting my Choice Specs. They activated, forcing me to use just one move. I had to make a choice.

I chose Hyper Beam, my most powerful attack. It charged slowly, but when I unleashed its full power, the Scizor was knocked back significantly. He slid to a stop, still unharmed, and rose to his feet. I saw what was coming, and tried to defend myself, but using Hyper Beam had left me drained of energy, unable to move. I could only watch as he used Aerial Ace once again, and I blacked out when he hit me.

…...

I woke several hours later, my side wet with blood. I saw Hazle, unconscious beside me, and Null, bleeding, unconscious, about fifty feet away. I saw the Scizor wrestling with a Dragonite. I tried to stand, but yet again my legs refused to move. I watched as the Dragonite pushed the Scizor back, exerting extreme amounts of power, and blasted him with a Hyper Beam of his own.

The Scizor flew backward, slamming into a tree with a crunch. Yet still he rose, unharmed, from the spot where he fell. He shrugged of the blow like it did not exist. He jumped into the air, preparing to execute his finisher, but the Dragonite had different ideas. Flapping his wings, he rose. He tackled the Scizor mid-flight, slamming into him with a Giga Impact, before rising above his opponent.

The Dragonite climbed quickly, and was soon far above its opponent. It opened its maw, flaming at the teeth. A massive ball of flame formed, white hot and furious. There was a bright flash as the Dragonite launched the attack, the flames hitting the Scizor square in the chest, sending it plummeting to the ground twice as fast as before.

Scizor hit the ground with a massive crash, followed by a cloud of dust, but the Dragonite wasn't finished yet. Electricity crawled along its fingers, getting larger and larger with every passing moment. Suddenly, they lashed out, slamming into Scizor with extreme force, causing another eruption of dust.

Yet the Scizor rose, seemingly unharmed. It was dinged and scratched, but still more than capable of fighting. It dusted itself off, preparing to take another salvo. But the Dragonite was spent. He had little fight left in him, he was panting heavily. The blow was unexpected when it came.

The Scizor launched itself towards its foe, hammering it in the chest with a Metal Claw. It jumped off the Dragonite's chest into the air, before performing its finishing move: yet another Aerial Ace. It slammed Dragonite to the ground, causing an eruption of dust.

I flinched on the impact, feeling it from even this far away. Dragonite was out for the count. I struggled to move, and I managed to get to my feet, but I was fatigued from blood loss, so fighting was out of the question. I stumbled over to Hazle, I had to wake her and Null and get out off there.

But the Scizor was not done with me yet. He saw me stand, and began charging up for an attack I probably couldn't survive. I was prepared to die for my mission and my friends, but still, I wanted to take him with me. I pooled all my energy, preparing for one last Hyper Beam, when He reappeared.

A bolt of energy from nowhere alerted me to His presence. It lashed out, striking the Scizor in the jaw, slamming him backward. The Scizor, detecting a worthy opponent, back flipped in mid-air, landing heavily on his feet. His eyes glinted dully, as if he was not afraid. I smirked at the prospect; he didn't know what he was in for.

The second bolt came from an entirely different direction. It hit the Scizor in the claw, knocking him to the ground yet again. Two more attacks flew in from opposite directions, almost simultaneously. That was when I figured out that they were Future Sight attacks. Still, I could feel His raw power from somewhere nearby. Several attacks later, and Scizor was still going strong.

I noticed, from the corner of my eye, a seemingly dead Scyther get up, and limp away. The one I had Hyper Beamed. I could only hope he had learned his lesson. I noticed that the one I had hit with the Shadow Ball was also gone, obviously retreating to a safe location.

I was noticing a lag in the attacks; they were coming less frequently now. That's when He decided to show himself. He strode out of the darkness surrounding us, night had fallen. His rings were oddly lightless; he was not a true Umbreon in any sense now. He simply shared our body structure. He opened himself to attack many times, but the sheer power that radiated from his body alone kept the Scizor at bay. It had learned humility after all.

Both foes were circling now, Him openly laughing at his opponent, while the Scizor was wary, calculating, waiting or an opening that would never exist. There was no way that any opponent, no matter how powerful, could take on Him and win. It just wasn't possible. Yet, still, the Scizor seemed powerful in its own right, shrugging of fatal wounds that would have taken out any inferior Pokémon. I was starting to doubt His ability to win.

In the end, Scizor decided to attack first, launching himself towards Him, lashing out with every ounce of strength in his body. The blow bounced of, not even coming close to hitting. He visibly smirked. "You have a lot to learn," He said. "If you want to face me and live." Scizor paled, as if remembering His voice. He backed away slowly, not leaving an opening for attack. But still, He managed to launch many, powerful, psychic attacks to great effect, causing Scizor to flinch and stagger backward. Remembering the force of those attacks, I was amazed to see him remain standing at all.

Several blows later, and Scizor was barely standing, on the verge of unconsciousness. But he remained standing, using Detect and Protect as much as possible. But those defences were temporary, and He waited until the moment the defences lowered to strike. Scizor, knowing he was almost out of options, did the only thing he could. He jumped up into the air, preparing once again to launch Aerial Ace. But the moment before he touched the ground, he was knocked backward by an enormous amount of energy. Like Hyper Beam, but a hundred times stronger.

Scizor retreated, backing away slowly, now battered and bruised, smoking a little from the Mega Attack, as I called it. He was holding his arm awkwardly, I guessed it was broken. But he managed to retreat quickly enough, soon well out of the range of attack. Silent as a ghost, He disappeared once again.

I heard the bushes being parted, and I looked to see the same human who had saved me too many times before, come running towards me once again. This time, however, he went _past _me, heading for his bruised and battered Dragonite. He used another spray-bottle thing on it, reviving it, and restoring it to relative health, before returning it to its Pokéball, and safety.

I looked down at myself, and I was surprised to see that I wasn't bleeding anymore. My fur was still matted with blood, but the wounds had healed up, His work, more than likely. Null was similarly healed, and Hazle was regaining consciousness. I walked over to where Ritch had been thrown, hours ago, and found that he was missing. I looked around a little more, finding no trace of him.

It dawned on me that he might have woken before me, but it was still unbelievable that he could wake and walk of with the severe injuries he had had. I searched through the grass, still looking for him, when Hazle walked up beside me.

"You won't find him," she said. "He ran off about fifteen minutes after you were knocked out. Turns out, that Scizor likes to play with his food." I grimaced, worried about my friend. He would never make it alone. I had to find him. And I had to find him soon.

…

After several hours of searching, I still could not find him. He was being unnaturally stealthy for him. I spent many more hours searching, finding nothing, no tracks, nothing. I was beginning to think he didn't want to be found, when I heard him scream in pain.

I ran towards the sound, entering some dark woods in the process. I found him standing surrounded by Skorupi, at least a dozen, with a Drapion directly in front of him. It was huge, standing nine feet tall, dwarfing me. I could feel power in its movement and gaze, but it was nothing compared to the Scizor I had faced. Nothing. It was hell bent on finishing off Ritch, who had a massive cut along his left flank. Blood flowed from the wound like water from a tap.

The Drapion brought its arms together with a resounding crash, and its hands began to glow. Dull grey spikes shot out of its hands, seemingly materializing out of nowhere. Most of them missed, but one managed to hit him in the leg, at the knee, breaking it backward. Ritch howled in pain. The Drapion reared up, and a blade of energy appeared on its arm. It slammed down on Ritch, slashing straight through him. For a moment, I feared he had been cut in half, but I was relieved to see that he was more or less unharmed. False Swipe.

Ritch fell backward, landing with a dull thud. He rose back up somewhat sideways, presenting his side to the Drapion, goading it. The Drapion became even more enraged, snarling ferally, intent on finishing what he had started. His hands began to glow again, and moments before the spiky rain, I saw Ritch smile darkly. Spikes lanced out from the Drapion's hands, striking Ritch in many places. One of the spikes went _through_ his chest, near the neck, and I knew it was a kill-shot. Blood spurted from the hole, flowing freely, dampening the grass all around.

Ritch's body remained standing eerily, as if gravity had forsaken it. The Drapion roared in triumph, and motioned for the Skorupi to leave. He smiled showing of his great teeth, he looked right at me, and I was sure he saw me. But he turned and left, leaving me bewildered as to why he left me alone. I stared at Ritch's now fallen corpse, still with a gruesome smile on its face, wondering why he did it. Why did he get himself killed when he could have lived? I sighed, my eyesight becoming blurry. I fought against the impulse to cry, I didn't want to give the Drapion the satisfaction of seeing how he had hurt me.

I stared at the body of my friend sullenly, not knowing what to do. I considered calling off the mission at that point, realizing just how dangerous it had become, but I thought better of it. I would finish my mission, and kill the Drapion who had killed my friend. I swore to myself that I would. I looked at the body one last time, before turning on my heels and returning to the grassland where Hazle and Null waited.

* * *

**So that's that, Ritch is officially out of the story. I probably wont have another chapter up until Monday, but stay tuned! It WILL BE LONG!**

**As always, pls review!**


	5. Next Generation

**Chapter 4: Next generation.**

I woke up tired, hungry, and alone. I wanted to sleep more, but I had to reach Blackthorn by noon, so I packed up anyway. I packed up the tent, got dressed, and started to walk towards the mountains that I had crossed so frequently. I knew them better than Clair did.

I stretched my stiff muscles, sore from the exertion I had done the day before. Sebastian was still hurt from his fight, stored safely in his Pokéball, but Alex and Daniel walked beside me as always. Ronin, tired from all the flying he did the day before, was also resting in his Pokéball.

After five minutes of walking, I reached a lonely Pokémon Centre, which was built to service passers-by like me. I decided to drop Sebastian off there, pick him up on my way back. He needed to rest.

Opening the front door, I stepped into the cool, air-conditioned main room of the Pokémon Centre, smiling at the pink haired nurse behind the counter. I handed Sebastian's ball to her, and she smiled, understanding what I wanted her to do with it. She knew me pretty well.

Stepping outside, I squinted against the bright morning sun. Soon, I would be in the cool shade of the mountains, and not long after that, I would be underground. I nodded to Alex, who was lounging around by the door, and he sighed, not wanting to walk but knowing he had to. He stood, shrugging his shoulders and yawning. He was just as tired as I was.

I walked down the lonely mountain path, wishing that I still had Kenya. That bird could have flown me here, and I wouldn't have to deal with a cranky Alex all day. But she had submitted to her instincts, and was now flying free with a large flock of Fearow somewhere in Kanto. I sighed, missing my prized Pokéathlon champ, but I knew she was in a better place now.

I was nearing the Ice Path, when I heard someone call out. "Hey you, I challenge you to a battle!" I sighed, tired of fighting amateurs. I turned, looking as un-interested as possible. It wasn't very hard. He threw out a Great ball, likely containing his best Pokémon, and I nodded to Alex. He could handle this one.

The great ball burst open, revealing a Shuppet who was clearly no match for Alex. I had never been in a serious battle before. I nodded to Alex, giving him free rain to do whatever he wanted. He turned back to the battle, grinning like a maniac. Just a moment later, the Shuppet was writhing on the ground in pain. Alex knocked it out with a swift slap in the face.

The trainer ran off, upset at his loss, and I smirked lightly. Serves him right. I walked foreword into the tunnel of ice that I was frequenting all too much lately. The darkness closed in around me quickly, making it hard to see. But I knew exactly where I was going, years of experience would do that.

Fifteen minutes later, we cleared the end of the tunnel, walking into the broad daylight. Blackthorn was just a short jog away. I hit the Pokémart first, grabbing some Full Restores from the shelves, and dropping twenty thousand yen on the counter on my way out. I shoved the spray bottles into my bag, and ran towards the gym, hoping that I wouldn't be late. I managed to make it just in time, stepping into the blazing hot room that Clair loved a little too much. Alex and Daniel had an aversion to heat, so I let them wait outside. They nodded; I wouldn't need them to beat Clair.

Moments later, I was through the gym's elaborate puzzle system, standing next to a fuming Clair. "How do you get through so fast?" she asked. "Even I can't remember it that well!" I sighed, she just didn't get it. "Listen," I said. "You call me here every week hoping to beat me. It's not hard to figure out the trap system when you've run it a thousand times." She growled, not happy with my response. She was going to say something, but I held up a finger, and Ronin's ball.

She seemed to understand, as she let out her team, a Dragonair and a Gyarados and a Charizard, all decently powerful, but nothing compared to Ronin. I tossed the expertly crafted; never miss Master Ball, with slight satisfaction at seeing her horror. She had forgotten that my team most powerful, if volatile fighter was housed in this ball. She always forgot.

Unleashed in a ball of red energy and smoke, Ronin, a Lugia, emerged. He roared angrily, intent on getting back to his rest as quickly as possible. He looked over at me angrily, but I just smiled and pointed at Clair's Pokémon. He seemed to understand, and he turned back to them, more than ready to wipe the floor with them.

The three, used to losing against Ronin, looked to Clair for guidance. She shrugged. "Go to town." She said. The three, very scared, Pokémon looked back towards their opponent, preparing to attack him all at once. Dragonair launched a Hyper Beam, Gyarados used Giga Impact, and the Charizard used Blast Burn. The three combined attacks would have taken down any lesser Pokémon, but Ronin simply shrugged them off, countering with a Hydro Pump attack on the Charizard.

It slammed into the wall, unconscious, while the remaining two launched another salvo of attacks, two doses of Dragon Pulse. The combined attack force caused Ronin to stagger, but he remained on his feet. Rolling his eyes, blasted the two with Aeroblast, knocking them both out. Ronin roared triumphantly, his gaze settling on me. I understood his meaning, and returned him to his Master Ball. Clair did the same to her Pokémon.

"Well," Clair said. "I guess you win again, Ethan. I guess Red was serious when he said you were good. But I will beat you someday!" I sighed, she said that EVERY TIME! And she had yet to beat me once. Not surprising, considering that I was considered the best Pokémon trainer in the world. I had beaten every Pokémon league in the known world, Johto, Kanto, Hoenn, even Sinnoh. I had beaten Red long ago, with extreme difficulty, to secure my place as the best in the world.

Few could hold there own against me, only Red, Blue, Lance, and Steven Stone of Hoenn could withstand more than a round of pummelling from Ronin. Red was the only person who had managed to defeat Ronin, wearing him down with his six Pokémon, until a weary Pikachu had hit him with an over-powered Thunder attack. Blue, widely regarded as the third best trainer in the world, had beaten all the leagues, like me and Red, but he could never defeat me or Red, regardless of whether I used Ronin or not.

Clair, who had become obsessed with the idea of beating me, challenged me every week that I was in Johto. She wanted very badly to overcome Lance in the grand scheme of things, but I kept beating her back. Red and Blue, along with Lance himself, did the same. She had managed to beat the Hoenn and Sinnoh Pokémon leagues, and she had been offered a spot on the Johto Elite four, but she had declined. She said she wanted to stay in Blackthorn, to take care of "Her gym" and the Dragon's Den, but I knew she didn't want to serve under Lance. She would only accept it if she became Champion of Johto.

I stepped back into the sunshine and relative cold of Blackthorn, leaving the gym behind yet again. I stretched my arms, still tired from lack of sleep, and motioned for Alex and Daniel to follow me. The lithe Toxicroak and hulking Feraligator had been lying down in the shade of a small tree. I wanted to check on that Umbreon again. He had a knack for getting himself into trouble.

I was walking briskly back to the Ice Path, when a familiar voice called to me from behind. "Hey, Ethan!" Blue called. "I got a present for you!" I turned toward my friend, watching him run towards me with an Ultra Ball in his hand. He tossed it to me, throwing it a good forty feet. He must have played softball as a kid. I caught the flying ball, and looked at the markings on the surface. They were old, faded words that had long since become illegible. I looked towards him, puzzled as to why he would give me his Ball. He nodded. "Open it," he said. I tossed it lightly to the ground, activating the trigger mechanism. Red energy spewed out, unleashing a Staraptor with brown and white feathers.

It looked around, confused as to where it was, before its gaze settled on me. "Do you like it?" Blue asked. "I caught him a while ago in Sinnoh, and I heard you lost Kenya, so, here you go. This guy is for you." I thanked Blue, returning the Staraptor, Talon, to his Ultra Ball. "And he already knows fly, so you can get wherever you need to go." I thanked Blue again, before setting out towards the Ice Path. Blue went towards the gym, probably going to see Clair.

…...

An hour later, I was resting in Ecruteak city, with Sebastian's Pokéball at my side. Sebastian himself was busy searching for the Umbreon, well north of where I was now. I could only hope he found him soon. Knowing him, he was either maimed, dying, or dead already. I either had to capture him to keep him safe, or forget about him completely. Neither was an option at the moment, I can't forget him, and I had filled up Bill's PC with Pokémon already. So, I continue to keep an eye on him until he learns not to stick his nose where it shouldn't be.

Sebastian came back a half hour later, motioning for me to hurry. I tossed Talon out of his ball, and told him to follow Sebastian. He took flight hurriedly, and powerfully, much better than Kenya could have. We flew out, very far from anywhere I had been before, deep into the mainland. It was largely unexplored, with no human towns anywhere near where we were now. I heard rumours about a group of ruins way far up north, deep in the polar regions of the Earth.

Sebastian started to fly lower and lower over time, leading me to think that we were close. I was partially right, as Sebastian signalled for me to land. I returned Talon to his ball, and followed Sebastian on foot. He was fast for a Dragonite, outdistancing me somewhat quickly. He stopped at the entrance to some dark looking woods.

He nodded towards it, before walking in and being swallowed by the shadows. I took a deep breath, before following him in. Claustrophobia set in almost immediately, causing me to sweat and hyperventilate. I forced myself to continue farther in, before I lost sight of Sebastian. If that happened, I would get lost. And getting lost in the woods was not on my to-do list for today.

I caught up to Sebastian, who had stopped to get his bearings. I looked around, and to my surprise, found someone staring back. Red eyes were staring at me from the bushes, glowing from the light of golden rings on the Umbreon's fur. It was the one I was searching for, Scarred face and all. His eyes seemed, distraught, unlike the last time I had seen him. He stared distrustfully at me, unlike before. And he had a new collection of scars, all over his body. I didn't know how I knew that, his fur still covered his body, but I knew.

He started to back into the brush, and I noticed a small green tail sticking out of a bush. He saw where I was looking, and growled deeply. I took a step back, even with Sebastian there to protect me I didn't want to fight this Umbreon. I wanted him to be protected, not hurt. He started to walk out of the bushes, still watching me, never once looking towards Sebastian. I saw a finned, blue tail join the green one. The Vaporeon had arrived.

I was watching the Umbreon when I heard a massive crash off to my left. I whirled, Sebastian going into a defensive stance, as a red being came closer and closer. I thought of letting out Ronin, but the cramped trees would give him no room to manoeuvre, he would just get hurt. A Scizor, badly bruised, stumbled into us, with a broken arm held awkwardly at its side. The Umbreon visibly stiffened at the sight, I couldn't think of any reason why at the time.

I looked towards Sebastian, saw that he was just as stiff, if not more so. The two obviously knew the Scizor. But he stumbled on without attacking, so I figured he was scared of something behind him, following him. I turned to see a massive, hulking figure emerge from the bushes, its thick brown fur getting caught on several bushes and branches. A cloud seemed to flow along its back, and I recognized the Pokémon as Entei. It stared at me with dark eyes, before walking past me. It seemed to talk to Sebastian, and it turned towards me with narrow eyes. It roared massively, causing intense pain in my ears. I cried out, but the sound was lost in the sound that assailed my body. Yet in the roar, clear as day, I could hear a voice. _My gift to you,_ It said. After that, I blacked out.

….

When I woke up again, my ears still hurt. I stood, noting that I had fallen against a tree when I passed out. Sebastian was watching me from a tree he had climbed. He smiled peevishly at me, before jumping down. He landed with a dull thud on the ground. He opened his mouth as if to yawn, yet I heard _words _come out. "About time you woke up!" he said.

My eyes shot open, I jumped back from the shock. I could _understand him!_ I looked at myself, just to make sure I was still human. I was, for the most part, still human, except for a small, blue ring on my palm. It glowed slightly in the darkness, a natural flashlight. I blinked in surprise; this mark seemed to be like the rings on an Umbreon. I looked around, spotted the Umbreon still lounging in the grass. He looked at me, smirking at me. "The least you could do is call me Tal," he said. I walked backward oh so slightly, and he seemed to notice. "What's wrong?" he said. "I don't scare you, do I?" I clenched my hand into a fist, and turned towards Sebastian.

But he was gone. I looked around quickly, claustrophobia setting in once again. "Sebastian!" I called. Tal padded up beside me, silently, to sit at my side. "He decided to leave, he has things to do." I looked down at Tal, somewhat angrily, and he looked back. He wasn't afraid of me, he wasn't afraid of even Sebastian, who towered over him. He smirked, walking away from me with slight aggravation. Not wanting to be alone in the forest, I followed him.

He led me to a small clearing, wear his two partners were waiting. The Espeon gazed at me with curiosity, while the Vaporeon eyed me with blatant hostility. I watched her wearily. Tal wouldn't have any of that, however. "Enough, Null. He's not a threat." The one named Null looked unconvinced, but she looked away from me. The Espeon continued to stare at me, or more accurately, at my hand. I clenched it into a tight fist, and looked away.

Tal walked over to the Espeon, conversed with her for a moment. He said something that made her gasp in shock. I was reasonably sure that he was telling her about my new ability, it was obvious. She looked me over quickly, again lingering on my glowing blue hand. I resolved to buy gloves as soon as possible. I had lost my first pair years ago. I shrugged under her gaze, feeling somewhat uncomfortable.

I heard a rustle in the bushes; saw a human walk towards us. I couldn't see his face, but I had the impression of red hair. Silver walked into the clearing, smirking at me, at everything around him. He had changed his attitude towards his Pokémon, but he still treated me with disdain. He was angry that he could never beat me. He had recently upped his game, however, and he was more than capable of holding his own against Blue. He had beaten Lance and his Elite 4 two weeks after I did. He was thinking of journeying to Hoenn to take on their Pokémon league, but he didn't have the money for a plane ticket, so he settled on constantly challenging Red and Blue.

He looked me up and down, noticing my hand but not commenting on it. "So," he said. "What are you doing out here? I thought you had the weekly bore fest with Clair today." I clenched my hands, biting back a response. Fighting verbally with Silver was never a good idea; he had a way with words. "So," I said. "You want a rematch? I have a surprise for you this time…" His eyes brightened at the prospect of a rematch with me, we hadn't faced off since that day, so long ago, at the gates of the Indigo Plateau, and he wanted to see just how much better I had become. Yet at the same time, he was worried about my "surprise".

In the end, his desire to battle me came forth, and he agreed. "Fine," he said. "I win, and you finance my trip to Hoenn. You win, and I do whatever you want." I agreed to his terms, a plane ticket to Hoenn was nothing compared to my limitless funds. I pulled out Ronin's Ball, and Silver pulled out his custom made silver-gold ball with a mysterious M plated on in what I assumed was a crystal of some kind.

We tossed our balls together; they collided in a flash of red. Tal and his team skittered out of the way. Ronin roared fearsomely as always, angry that he had been released. Silver looked the Lugia over, thinking him was less of a threat than he was. Silver's Pokémon, a monster of a Typhlosion named Mina, roared equally loud, a feat I had not thought possible until I had met Entei. The two faced off, Ronin dwarfing Mina, had a clear advantage. He unleashed an Aero Blast, slicing Mina repeatedly with nothing more than wind. She fell backward, knocked out.

Silver did a double take at the sudden defeat of his prized Pokémon. "So, you're good," he said. "But then, you've got a legendary on your side. Well then, what do you want me to do, oh master?" I shook my head at his antics. "Keep an eye on the Umbreon." I said. "He tends to get into trouble and I can't be here all the time, can I?" He nodded slowly.

Tal, hearing my words, looked hurt. I must have hit a nerve with that jab. He looked at me sullenly, growling slightly. I sighed, not wanting to revoke my statement. Silver agreed to my terms, having nothing better to do anyway. I thanked him, and walked out of the clearing.

I searched around for Sebastian, but he was nowhere to be found. I was looking when I heard the parting of bushes somewhere behind me. I spun, seeing a harmless looking Skorupi staring back at me. I shooed it away, but it didn't move. I started to get angry, which surprised me, since I was usually so calm. Then, I saw a great pair of eyes open in the shadows, some great beast hidden within began to come foreword, causing a shaking of trees and bushes all around. I stared into the face of the nine foot tall Drapion with slight fear, knowing without a doubt that it wanted to kill me.

The fury in its eyes was clearly seen.


	6. Of Memories, Forgotten

**Sorry 'bout the name change folks, but the story evolved as I wrote, and the name suits it more. There is very little Ethan in this chapter, so the name didn't stick. Anyways, enjoy!**

**Chapter 5: Of Memories, Forgotten…**

I watched with morbid fascination as the Drapion hit Ethan with lethal force, slamming his body into a tree. Ethan fell to the ground, limp, as the Drapion advanced to finish the job. I watched it pick him up, its entire fist closing around him. And I watched, alarmed, as Ethan began to _glow. _A bright, emerald green light that emanated from somewhere within his body. I watched still as Ethan began to writhe, as if in pain. And still I watched as the Drapion dropped him as one would drop a thorny rose.

He fell to the ground in a crouch, bent over and holding his abdomen. He fell, face first, into the grass, and for a moment, I thought he was dead. But, a huge flash of white light, brighter than anything I had ever seen before, blinded me. Through the white haze, I heard a huge roar. I blinked, clearing my eyes, but even then, I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Ethan was gone. And something else was in his place.

Eyes of yellow, an elongated, green, serpentine body covered in red lining. Mysterious, yellow symbols covering the body, a bluish mouth. Rayquaza floated where Ethan had been a moment before. I could not believe my eyes; I must still have been dazzled. He roared again, and I felt the entire forest shake around me. Rayquaza gazed fixedly at the Drapion, fully prepared to return the favour. Yet something held him back. It was Him.

The strange Umbreon walked into the clearing, his eyes seeing everything. When he saw Rayquaza, he smiled. "So, my friend," he mused aloud. "You have found your true power. But yet, you do not know how to use it. Typical, Ethan." He glanced toward me, a strange look in his eyes. And within them, I saw something I never expected to see. I saw Silver, deep within his eyes. Hidden, deep, but there none the less. Silver was the one who had tormented me for so long. Silver was the one who had saved my life, so many times. Silver was the one.

The Drapion looked at Silver with intense hatred, the two knew each other. "You have foiled me for the last time, Forgotten One!" he yelled. Silver didn't reply. He didn't need to. He simply released Ethan from his mental restraints. And all hell broke loose.

Released from his constraints, Ethan released massive amounts of energy from his maw, which passed in waves through the trees, and anything they hit. Several smashed into the Drapion. Silver smirked somewhat. "General, is it not my job to stop you?" he said to the injured Drapion. So General was his name. Or maybe, his title. Flames began to form along Ethan's jaw, seeming like a liquid, they bubbled; fell, almost as if they were saliva. A fireball, larger than my entire body, blasted out, smiting the General in the chest. He fell backward, flames burning along his body, and began to flee. I watched him run, wondering how far he would get before the flames burned him to death. Ironic, that he should be felled by flames.

Ethan began to glow again, a bright emerald green. I closed my eyes, knowing what was coming. Even then, the flash burned through my eyelids, burning a pure, white-blue image onto my retinas. When I opened my eyes, Ethan was normal again. Except for his hand mark, which had changed drastically. It was now a series of glowing _green_ runes, similar to those that appeared on a Rayquaza's body, which scrolled up his arm to his elbow. He looked tired, very tired. He must have used his human energy to power his attacks.

Silver, still in his Umbreon form, walked up to the near fainted Ethan. "So, now you understand," he said. "What Entei gave you. Now, you know what Raiku gave me, and what Suicune gave Lyra. And now, you are one of us!" Ethan shuddered, and fell over, unconscious. I looked at him with slight envy. He was powerful, yet he was VERY different. He wasn't completely human, not anymore. Just what is he now?

I felt anger bubbling to the surface of my being, as I watched Silver stand over Ethan. I felt it pulse through my blood, hammering on my head. I could feel a powerful force gathering all around me. I could feel that I was losing control; that this sheer power was threatening to overwhelm me. My vision seemed red-shifted, everything seemed covered in blood. I had no idea what was happening, yet at the same time it felt strangely familiar. It was as if I had done this before.

A deep growl escaped my throat, surprising me as much as it surprised Silver. He turned towards me, eyes glinting oddly. They seemed purplish, which was very strange since his eyes were yellow. And for the first time, I saw fear in his eyes. I felt my anger intensify, and my eyes seemed to stop working. When my vision returned, Silver was lying near a tree, his flank cut open by a series of cuts. Massive gashes from the tip of his base of his tail to his necks, and from the amount of blood gushing out of them, I knew they were deep.

I managed to regain control of my anger, but it burned brightly just beneath the surface, ready to burn back through my skin, engulf me in angry flames once again. I felt a strange rush of emotions, not quite anger, not quite sadness. Just…..something. I felt memories that were not mine; images forced their way into my head. I felt my mind wrenched from the here and now, and tossed into the past. Pain exploded in my head, spreading through my body faster than a wildfire. But it was not pain, but an acute memory of pain.

_I looked through the bars of the cage, staring angrily at two human scientists. I felt hatred inside, far worse than anything I had ever felt before. I looked at myself in a small mirror at the back of the room, looked at the scars covering my body. Permanent reminders of the "experimentation" of the scientists. And I watched in a mixture of horror and amusement as the scars healed over completely, leaving smooth, unbroken skin behind. And then that was covered in fur._

_I turned back towards the humans, eyeing one with particular hatred. I didn't know why. He smiled at me, obviously not understanding what I was doing. I resolved to kill him first. The other, I would play with just a little longer. He would experience the pain that I had endured. But he would die eventually. That was set in stone. I looked over to the left, saw the other experiment in his cage. He sat calmly, his red body barely moving. He was, of course, a counter experiment. If I fail, he gets upped to full._

_I turned to the right, through a glass wall that separated the lab from the sample containers. Another fancy word for cage. There sat the Lugia, who was anything but calm. He was encased in a large cage, but he was used to flying free. To be trapped was an unknown feeling to him. I felt a mixture of pity and scorn towards him. He was trapped, but he could do something about it. He chose to remain trapped, and therefore, he didn't deserve my pity. When I broke out, he would be left behind. The others would go free, but not him._

_The humans went on their brake, leaving the lab somewhat satisfied that their latest experiment had been a success. I watched them leave, and when the door was locked behind them, I made my move. Obliterating the glass between me and freedom with a Hyper Beam, I stepped calmly from the cage, dropping lightly to the floor. I flexed my tired muscles, and stared intently at the only living creature that understood my pain. The Scizor simply shook his head at my stare, before saying plain out that he wanted to be left alone._

_I turned from him at once, not wasting any time. I smashed through the larger glass wall, tumbling to the ground several floors below. The fall would have injured any other Pokémon, but my refined skeletal structure, hardened beyond measure, took the fall easily. I rose to my feet, looking straight into the eyes of the Lugia. "You should have tried to escape on your own" I said darkly. "And now, you have no choice." I walked past his cage, into a small cluster of them. All experiments; all used to make me stronger. A small lock mechanism was all that kept them from freedom. I smashed them all, letting the poor things out. They would rampage, giving me the time I needed to escape._

_But at that moment, I saw the scientist return to the room. I smirked at them; they were too late to stop my escape. I felt my energy increase, so I capitalised on the opportunity. I fired a Hyper Beam through the lab window, hitting the first scientist dead centre in the face. A massive cloud of blood appeared, and for a moment, I thought I had completely vaporized him. I laughed, somewhat hysterically. This was too easy! They weren't even putting up a fight. I was in such a good mood that I decided to free the Lugia. A Shadow Ball ruptured the cage, shattering the entire thing into tiny pieces._

I snapped myself back to reality, appalled at the images that were coursing through my head. I saw Silver get up, back in his human form. He was seemingly unharmed, but at the same time I felt him weaken. He wasn't fighting me anytime soon. Pity. He looked at me with surprise. "Oh, where did you find this power?" he asked. Still angry, I retorted. "I'm not about to tell you!" He smiled somewhat, before turning away from me. He picked up Ethan, and carried him into the forest. Hazle came up beside me, looking freaked out. Every time I moved she flinched. She must have been watching what happened. I looked into her eyes, and they were different, not the green eyes I knew. They were the eyes of a human scientist I knew from somewhere.

_The other scientist rushed to the aid of his superior, and knelt to the ground beside the body. When he rose back to his full height, he turned towards me and smiled. I knew then that I had fallen for some trap. I saw him press a button on the Scizor's cage. The front of the cage opened, and the Scizor stepped out. It almost immediately flung itself towards me, and I knew that they were controlling him. He rammed into me with extreme force, enough to knock a human out, but I weathered the blow, and slammed into him in turn with a Giga Impact. He was flung against the wall with tremendous force. But, like me, he was super strong, and his body took the blow with minimal damage._

_He rose to his feet, seemingly unharmed. He began to advance on me, but I had a few more tricks up my sleeve. Due to the scientists' experiments, I was nearly immune to a variety of status effects and move types, and I could use almost every attack known to Pokémon. I lashed out with Blast Burn, flinging the Scizor back into the wall, denting the steel. He was hurt by that attack. His arm, drooping at his side, was broken, and I could see several cuts from the metal. I felt grim satisfaction at the power of my blows. I looked back towards the scientist in the window, and he was looking at me, pleased with his success. No matter that I was escaping, they could start over if they had to._

_The specimens that I had freed were rushing towards the only exit from the gigantic lab complex, a massive steel door. I sighed inwardly, and destroyed it in a burst of psychic energy. They ran free. I looked back at my opponent in time to duck under a poorly aimed blow. I had done more damage than I had thought, apparently. I felt a static charge form on my fur, growing more and more powerful with every passing second. When it reached its apex, it shot out, slamming into the Scizor with an insane amount of force, nearly snapping him in two._

_He slammed into the wall, bleeding profusely, and I felt a twinge of guilt. But I put the feeling behind me. He was being controlled somehow, but I didn't have the time to find out how. I began to walk out, when a shadow descended around me. I was not afraid, they couldn't harm me. I was too expensive. But I had to escape, so I sprinted towards the open door. But still, I was not fast enough. A robotic capture system drone descended from the roof, slamming into the ground in front of me. I was too late._

I forced my mind to return to reality, not comprehending the images in my head. Hazle was looking at me with concern; Null just behind her was looking at me fearfully. I felt several more pairs of eyes on me, and I turned to see Silver leaning against a tree, with a teenage girl standing beside him. She was looking at me with mild interest, not knowing what was going on in my brain. She said something to Silver, who nodded. I noticed that he was leaning on the tree because he was weak, not to look cool. His eyes were bloodshot, and he was holding his side. I noticed that his right arm was completely covered, everything beneath a long sleeve that was missing from his left side. He was even wearing a glove. The girl was wearing similar garments.

I noticed a taller man behind the two, also leaning on a tree. His eyes were fixed on me, and I could tell that he knew me from somewhere. He was dressed all in red, with spiky black hair. He looked at me with a strange look, somewhere between hatred and grudging respect. He definitely knew me. I felt uncomfortable under his gaze, and thankfully, he walked away. I knew that he would cross paths with me again.

I felt my anger burning its way to the surface again, and I had to actively fight it. That troubled me. _Was I made to destroy? _I thought to myself. I shook my head, trying to clear it, when another round of images assailed my consciousness.

_I was back in the cage, the robot had caught me. The scientist still alive made sure that I was sedated at all times. He laughed at me often, but strangely enough, he praised me at other times. I didn't understand; it was like he _wanted _me to kill his partner. He seemed to warm to me, but I couldn't say that the feeling was mutual. He tormented me; he would get what was coming to him. But over time, I felt myself come to like him. I still harboured resentment over being captive, but I began to feel as if the scientist were a friend. And when the lab boss came to pay a visit, it turned out that he was._

_The overly large man had stormed into the room, smashing into equipment and tools that were important; they were used to keep me alive during experimentation. The scientist had tried to stop the man, and been rewarded with a kick in the shin. I felt angry that the human was being abused by his superior; no one had the right to hurt him but me. I growled deep in my throat, snarling at the balding, obese man that was endangering my life. He looked at me with a smirk. "Watcha gonna do? Gonna 'scape an come git me?" He started to laugh maniacally. He smacked the scientist in the face. "Git yur beast ter calm down! He's gonna hurt muh ears!" The scientist smiled darkly._

"_That, sir," he said. "Is exactly what I want to happen. And more!" The balding man looked at me confused, and I saw the scientist press a button from the corner of my eye. The cage door opened, and once again I was free. I jumped onto the man's face, scratching it repeatedly, before running through the open door to freedom. I ran down the sterile, white-wash hallway, startling several lab technicians, before jumping out a low window onto the specimen containment floor. They still hadn't fixed the door, so it was my best bet at escape. As I turned a corner into the atrium, however, I saw a veritable army of experiments waiting for me._

_They were wearing strange metal collars around their necks, which I assumed was a secondary project in the lab complex. Their eyes were reddish, no matter what their natural colours were, so I assumed it was something to do with the head. Mind control devices. They charged me, something they definitely would not have done under normal circumstances, so I knew someone was messing around in their heads. I frowned, not wanting to fight them, but I had little choice._

_The first to reach me was a Rattata, and I knocked him to the side with a body slam. The second, an Arbok, was knocked out by a Flamethrower attack. I saw a Croconaw from the corner of my eye, he had been using his team-mates as distractions to get off a good shot. I turned toward him as he launched a water attack of some kind. I dodged to the side, and lashed out with Thunder. The poor thing was slammed against the steel wall forty-feet away with a sickening crunch. I had more than likely broke half the bones in his body, if not more. I didn't let regret get the better of me, however, and I turned back towards the mob of Pokémon still standing._

_I dodged several more blows, and returned several more, and before I knew it, the mob had thinned to one. An uninteresting Shinx. I didn't want to hurt him, he was young, but at the same time, I had to escape. He looked at me, unafraid, but he made no move to attack. A waiting game ensued. By the time I figured out that he was playing me for a sucker, it was to late. Another robot descended from the ceiling, paralyzing me with a sedative. The last thing I saw was the Shinx smirking at me. And then everything went black._

For a moment, I forgot where I was. For the first time, the memories had ended before I could pull out. I didn't know what that signified, but it couldn't be good. "If you die in a dream….." I mused. I heard a loud thump from somewhere behind Silver, and then a cry of pain. Silver turned, and limped into the forest. The girl stayed to watch. I heard many, many curses from behind her, and I could only assume that Ethan had woken up. The girl flinched slightly, and grasped her arm almost reflexively. She pulled the glove off, revealing a blue mark. Blue mark_s_. A series of blue runes etched into her skin, trailing their way up her arm. I knew that they went to the elbow. And they reminded me of a certain blue Pokémon…

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**Is Tal going crazy? Pfft, like I'd tell you! Wait, maybe I should tell you... No, I'l leave that to later Chapters. As always, pls review!**


	7. Returning

**Well, it's finaly up! Unfortunately, I missed my mark once again. I fell short of my 4,000 word goal. Even missed the ten page milestone. Well, maybe next time.**

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Chapter 6: Returning…

I woke early the next day, wanting to finish my mission quickly so I could return home. Hazle and Null were already awake, waiting for me to wake up. They didn't want to make me angry, or so it seemed. I stretched my stiff limbs, preparing for a long day of walking. And then it hit me. I had no idea who or what we were looking for. I decided to ask Null, she would know. But, as I walked over, Null started to edge backward. Afraid of me, no doubt. I started to speak, but suddenly my vision became clouded. "Not again!" I cried. Once again, I felt the hear-and-now slip away, and I was thrust back into the maelstrom of memories.

_I was sitting in the cage again, caught for the fifth time. Yet again, I had failed to escape, every time something stopped me. I shrugged my shoulders in pain; they had given me a 'lesson' so I wouldn't try again. Not that it mattered; there was nothing they could do to stop my inevitable escape. Or so I thought. The fat lab director was talking to the scientist in charge of me. They had 'replaced' the old one; he had let me out after all. I was doing my best to ignore them, but they were talking about what they were going to do with me, so I couldn't resist eavesdropping._

_"It's on yur head if he 'scapes again" the director was saying. The scientist merely smiled; an evil smile. I really didn't want to know what he was thinking. "I have a most… elegant… solution to that problem, sir" the scientist said. I was surprised at the smoothness of his voice, it was like velvet. Interesting…. The two looked me over, fed up with my escape attempts. The scientist continued. "I have developed a serum that will allow us to control his power and memories. If we use it, he will forget who and where he is, making him easily controlled, and he will lose the ability to use any modicum of power unless we administer an antidote. His memory may never return, however, so we need to use moderation." The fat man just laughed. "Who cares 'bout his memories? They dern't concern us. Administer the serum." _

_The scientist grew a conscience then and there, apparently, because he slammed his fist into the fat man's jaw, knocking him back a few steps. He winked at me, and pressed a button on a console. Yet again, the cage opened. I jumped clear, dashing through the door before the fat man could catch me. I once again made it to the exit, running full tilt for the door. This time, there was nothing waiting for me. Just a big empty room. That alone made me stop. Too easy, far too easy. They never left this floor unguarded. Not after I attempted to escape the first time. I looked to the ceiling, and I saw no robots waiting to ambush me. I looked toward freedom…._

_And walked back towards the lab. I had a score to settle before I left. It was a short jaunt back through the hallway towards the lab I was held in, and about halfway I saw the director standing with an overly smug look on his face. He expected me to come back, but he did not expect that I would do it of my own free will. I used my psychic abilities to become invisible, and walked in a circle around him. He had no idea I was there, and when I was directly behind him, I struck. A Shadow Ball hit the obese director in the back of his head, flinging him foreword at an incredible speed. He hit the far wall with a crunch, more than likely cracking his skull. I walked farther into the building, farther from freedom. I was taking a huge risk, but I felt it was worth it._

_The scientist was clutching his arm when I arrived, and there was blood on his white uniform. He smiled faintly when he saw me, and frowned when I communicated telepathically with him. I told him that I _wanted _the injection, to be free from the memories of torment that would stay with me forever otherwise. He shrugged, grabbing a needle. I winced as he jabbed it into my arm, but I fled afterwards, running as fast as I could to reach the exit before the injection made it to my brain. I needed to think coherently to escape. I made it to the door faster than I had thought possible, and before I left, I looked back towards the room I had been captive in for so long. How long had I been imprisoned in this place for? Years? Decades? I couldn't answer that question. I saw the scientist who had helped me escape, and my eyes seemed to zoom in on his nametag. 'Jonathon' it said. I would.. not.. remember that name. But still, it felt good to know. _

_I smashed the door open with a Hyper Beam, quickly dashing outside and into the bushes. The light of the sun hurt my eyes, I had been inside for so long. They had chosen a hell of a place to build a top secret laboratory. Mt. Silver, one of the largest mountains in the world. Hard to get to, hard to navigate, impossible to notice the door on the side of Mt. Silver that faced inland. Perfect. I dashed down the hill, turned towards the small, flat building in the distance. It would be easy to get, well, anywhere once I made it to the human roads. I made it to the building sometime after sunset, and I passed out next to a bench on the left side of the building. Sleep at last._

I opened my eyes, and everything was on its side. I tried to stand, but my legs wouldn't support my weight, and I fell back down. Silver, in his Umbreon form, standing near a tree, was looking at me with interest. I felt a powerful presence nearby, and I knew it wasn't Silver. It was… something else. I tried to stand again, but again my legs failed me. So, I resorted to… unorthodox measures. Channelling my newfound psychic power, I forced my legs to stiffen, and I seemingly stood. To anyone else, it would appear as if I had simply stood up.

A large beast barged through the woods, almost hitting me. Without even realising that I had done it, I lashed out towards it with several powerful attacks. It fell to the ground, unconscious. I looked toward my would be attacker, and found it to be a rather unassuming Graveler. It seemed frenzied, however, and that startled me. They were usually calm. And the presence was still there, still awake, still ready to attack. Silver was barely able to move, so I would have to handle this on my own. Not that it mattered anymore. I was likely the most powerful Pokémon in existence if my visions were believable.

I saw a dark shape gliding just beyond my view, moving faster than I thought possible. It blended into the background of trees, and I couldn't place a specific shape. Hazle and Null were looking around wildly, detecting movement but not being able to place it. I watched as the shape came closer and closer, eventually forming into a Scizor. He looked at me with cold eyes, and I knew him right away. The one from the lab. I growled slightly, the sound growing louder as he got closer. I wasn't even aware that I was doing so, I was too focused on my foe to notice. And I didn't care, for the most part.

Hazle and Null were backing away, more than afraid of the one who had nearly killed them, and me. The one who had inadvertently lead Ritch to his death. And it was time for revenge. I had beaten him once, I could do it again. Except this time, I was stronger. This time, I had motivation. And this time, no robot would come to save him. It was a fight to the death, this time. My body began to respond to my brain, so I released my psychic hold on my legs. Better to use my natural speed, than to wear myself out using mind tricks. The Scizor assumed a fighting stance, his legs spread to shoulder distance, arms up in front of his face. I tensed my legs, and lunged.

I slammed into him with incredible force, knocking him off his feet. He was flung a long way, but he landed lightly on his feet, skidding to a halt fifty feet from me. I saw him dust himself off, but at the same time he began walking toward me. I unconsciously began charging a Thunder attack, and my fur began to spark with electricity. Several bolts shot out towards the Scizor, a few missed, but those that hit did minimal damage. He shrugged it off. He was strong, I'll give him that much. I knew that my attacks were going to do little damage, so I decided to use his weaknesses against him.

A massive ball of flames, larger than he was, impacted on his head and torso, knocking the Scizor back very far; burning him until he landed. That did some damage. I looked away for an instant, just to see where Null and Hazle went, when he hit me in the back of the head. I felt my vision blur, and blackness threatened to overcome my vision. And then came the hatred. Pure, uncontrollable hatred seeped through my body, flooding my mind, controlling my actions. I felt my body heat up as I turned towards my unlucky opponent, preparing to finish him off once and for all.

He saw the look in my eyes, and for a moment I saw amusement in his. Then, I began to see fear. A lot of fear. And that served to egg me on. My fur began to crackle with electricity once again, but I was going to go much farther than that. My mouth began to burn, flames spurting out, but again, I was going much farther than that. I felt an unfamiliar power surround my body, growing stronger with every passing moment. After what seemed like forever, I began my attack.

I started with a Giga Impact/Volt-tackle hybrid, slamming into him with tremendous electrical force. Less than a second later, I blasted him with a Blast Burn, which sent him flying. Before he could rise, I blasted him with a Hydro Cannon, which sent him flying again. Before he even landed, I smote him with Hyper Beam. He was slammed into a tree, which proceeded to snap in half. And I don't mean a tiny tree; I'm talking about a full three meter thick oak tree. He was sent flying through it, eventually skidding to a stop on the rough ground. Damn friction.

The Scizor began to stand, but I didn't give him the opportunity. My body began to glow a deep purple, and his lifted clean off the ground. I held him suspended in the air, looking deep into his eyes, trying to find his motives. Hi eyes were black as obsidian, no light shined within. No eyes were naturally that dark. He squirmed under my gaze; doing everything he could to obscure his eyes, to hide them from me. And all too suddenly, he smiled.

"At least one of us was successful," he said, a faint hint of resignation in his voice. "They almost scrapped Project SC-445, and ironically, you saved it." _Project SC-445? What could that mean? _My mind burned with questions, many of which wouldn't be answered. I was going to get revenge. Yet he still laughed openly at me, unaware that I was prepared to end his miserable life. Or so I thought. "You gonna kill me? Well, that doesn't change anything. _You _are the reason I exist, so don't blame anything on me. Your escape and capture was _your _fault, not mine. Heh, if you had been agreeable, you would have escaped a lot sooner. Because I wouldn't have stopped you the first time."

His black eyes focused on my blue ones, and we stared intently into each others eyes. Neither of us was willing to back down, yet at the same time neither of us was willing to make a move on the other. A stalemate. And then he smiled. A dark, twisted, scheming smile. He was planning something. Or something was on its way here. "You don't even know your own name." he said. I growled in response, wanting to scream out _its Tal, you jackass! _But for some reason, I couldn't. How did I know that my name was Tal? I didn't, and that scared me. I was preparing to kill the only link to my past. Naturally, I hesitated. That was my first mistake.

I realized too late that we weren't alone. I felt searing blades slice along my left flank, and I jumped backward. Unfortunately, I lost my focus, and the Scizor got free. I looked around, and my eyes focused on a spot of yellow in the trees. Two Beedrills, red eyes focused on me, were standing just outside the forest. They were looking at me as if confused. They both began laughing, however, and they gestured towards me. "This is the one?" they asked. "Project U-90 was meant to create super powerful Pokémon, and this one does not seem at all strong." I winced in pain; the wound on my side had begun to swell. Then, I smirked. The wound began to stitch itself back together.

_That _made them start, exchanging frightened glances. After all, how do you kill something that regenerates constantly? They looked back at me, somewhat more cautiously. I smiled darkly, light glinting off my eyes. They began to move apart, reaching the Scizor's flanks after a moment. The three began to advance, but their powerhouse was weakened. And they knew that I was going to slaughter them if they tried anything. They walked foreword slowly, cautiously, waiting for me to make the first move. And when I did attack, they had no warning.

I simply disappeared, reappearing behind them. I struck the Beedrills sharply, sending them sprawling into the dirt. The Scizor was fast enough to block my attack, despite his injuries, so I reasoned that the others were rookies. Normal. He was not the least bit tired, he actually seemed…happy. More reinforcements were on their way. "You may be strong," he said. "But there's only one of you. And I've got plenty of cannon fodder on the way." Not surprising, he always had a contingency plan. Then, more surprising, I heard a voice from behind us. "He's not alone…not exactly, anyway."

I turned, seeing the girl who had been hanging around Silver. She was staring defiantly into the Scizor's eyes, and I saw the runes on her arm pulse strongly. They were quite possibly reactive to danger, becoming a natural warning system. I turned around to see Ethan standing over the fallen Beedrills. I saw blood running down their heads, and I thought he may have killed them. But they started to move, so I turned back to my main opponent, ready for a fight. He just laughed, not aware of Ethan's power. Or maybe he was. Who knew?

I slammed into him, catching him off guard, knocking him into a nearby tree. He rose, stunned, to his feet. But his legs were too damaged to hold him up after that blow, and he fell back towards the ground. Not wanting him to break his neck, I picked him up psychically. He floated in the air a few inches off the ground, an unearthly purple glow surrounding his body. I had questions, and he was the only one with the answers. "What is Project U-90?" I asked. He snarled, not answering. "Wrong answer." He slammed into another tree, then another, and another. When I stopped, he was bruised and bloodied. He'd been through worse, so torture was not going to work.

He smiled, aware that I was getting frustrated. I wanted to end his life so badly, but I _needed _his answers, needed him to live. I growled deeply in my throat, warning him, but he paid no heed. He would ignore me as long as he could. Which just happened to be a very long time. And I didn't have much time. Any minute, several thousand bug Pokémon were going to be swarming me, and I wasn't in the mood to fight. He knew that, as did Ethan. I shook my captive a few more times, before flinging him into a tree. Or, to be more accurate, _through _a tree. He went clean through it, and then several more. I did stick around long enough to see how many.

I sprinted all out in the direction Null and Hazle had gone, running faster than I thought possible. I leapt fallen logs, dove under low lying branches, and in less than five minutes I was leaving the forest. I could see Null and Hazle in the distance, running from the Scizor. They turned, saw me coming towards them, and began to run even faster. I caught up to them, and when I did I slowed to match their speed. No use running ahead. I looked behind me, and I saw three shapes flying behind us. Three Pidgeots were flying in formation behind us, Silver Ethan and the girl. What was her name? Wasn't it…Lyra?

But also behind us was a mass of Pokémon, all bugs. They were stirring up a huge cloud of dust behind them. They must be following in huge numbers. Leaving their leader alive had been a mistake. A big mistake. But it was too late to worry about him at the moment. Hazle and Null didn't have my stamina, nor my speed. They couldn't keep running, and they couldn't outrun the horde behind us. A fight was inevitable. Might as well fight before we exhaust ourselves. Ethan and Silver were of the same mind, as they landed. Their forms blurred for an instant, and when they cleared, they had changed. Ethan was a Rayquaza again, and Silver resumed his Umbreon persona. Lyra stayed in the air.

I stopped running, but Null and Hazle didn't stop. _Let them run,_ I thought to myself. _I'll buy them some time._ I turned back, trotting over to Ethan and Silver. Lyra kept flying, following Null and Hazle. Keeping watch over them. I had a strange feeling that I wouldn't see them again for a long, long time. _No use thinking of the future. This time, you need your head in the present!_ I fell in beside Ethan, who was floating a foot off the ground. It was going to be a long day. And a long fight. I steeled myself, and began to sprint towards the mass of enemies, Ethan and Silver flanking me. And I shouted, almost unconsciously.

"Onward! Onward unto glory!"

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**Big fight scene coming up! For Chapter 7, I'm going to post a 1 page Preview, likely on Saturday, because I will have limited writing time on Sunday. Fathers day will be consuming my time. But take heart! My school year is over, and for a while I'll have a ton of time to write. Look foreword to a chapter every 3 days! (Well, maybe if you're lucky) Until then, this is Infinity WEAPON, signing off. ;) Wait, I forgot something! I have a contest officially opening today. I want you to vote for your favorite Pokemon to appear next, along with some background motives, and maybe some family. Definately some backstory required to win. Ok, this time I'm actually signing off. ;)**


	8. Glory, huh?

**I finally got off my lazy ass and finished it! One more chapter down! Hurra! Also, since I have failed to mention this before, I DO NOT OWN POKEMON! I own only any OCs that pop up in this story.**

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Chapter 7: Glory, huh?**

I grimaced, assessing the enemy's numbers. They must have had thousands of soldiers, all ready to fight. And there were only three of us. Not the greatest odds. But we would have to make due, nobody was going to bail us out. We charged the nearest mass, cutting through the entire group and out the other side. I knew the battle was hopeless unless I could find a place to bottleneck them. If they could only fight one at a time…

The horde began to turn, hundreds of eyes turning to face us. Anyone else would have balked at the sight of so many opponents. But not us. Silver maintained his cocky demeanor, Ethan remained full of anger, and I was just plain indifferent. They couldn't kill me, after all. I decided to go onto the offensive, and darted back toward the group of foes in front of us. I felt my instincts take over again, and my vision dimmed. For a moment, I could see nothing. Then, bright light flooded back into my vision.

The bug army had been reduced to half its original strength. _Holy shit._ I had no idea I was _that_ strong. The entire army seemed to back away, yet they still had an enormous numerical advantage. I still counted a good five thousand, and many of them were well into their evolutionary line. And they were afraid of _one person!_ My eyes narrowed, and they started to _run away!_ But they ran towards Null and Hazle, something I didn't want to happen. Everything was going wrong. I started to run after them when I felt a powerful blow hit my head. I was launched foreword, hitting the ground with bone-crushing force.

I rolled over, turning to face my foe. And surprisingly enough, I knew him. The Shinx that had orchestrated one of my many captures in the lab; that was who I faced now. Except he had evolved. Twice. _Well shit._ Just like that time, so long ago, he just stood there. I looked behind him, and saw to my horror that he had knocked Ethan and Silver unconscious. Unfortunately, they had reverted to their human forms, easy targets for another assailant. I looked at my opponent warily, and noticed that he was wearing a metallic collar. Just like last time… Maybe I could use that to my advantage.

I glanced one last time at my friends before turning to face my opponent. He glared at me, red eyes shining evilly. "Looks like you're on your own now, eh?" he intoned sharply. I winced; his voice was like a knife to my ears. I smirked. "You don't have a robot to save your ass this time, and I won't hold back anymore. Surrender or I will kill you." He shook his head. "Overconfidence will destroy you. I may be inferior, but I am not weak." I sighed, rolling my eyes. "I can't be killed through normal means. I heal on the genetic level. You cannot wound me permanently. So, go ahead, do your worst."

He lunged, swinging his paw in my general direction. I sidestepped, and rammed my shoulder into his side. The attack knocked him off his feet, sending him sprawling to the side. He rose shakily to his feet, glaring at me. He tried to charge me, jumping into the air as he did so. I simply fired a hyper beam at him, swatting him out of the air like a fly. He was slammed to the ground, head first. I smiled grimly at my success. Such a blow would knock any opponent out.

And yet his prediction came true. I HAD underestimated him. The giant fuzz ball rose lightly to his feet, favoring an injured leg. From the look of it, the leg was broken. He stared at me for a long moment, his red eyes boring into my skin. My own red eyes glared back. We stood there, eyes locked on each other. I was surprised that he could stand my eyes for so long. Very few could. In the end, though, he was the one to look away first.

"What is your name?" I asked. He looked at me as if I had slapped him. "We have no names. We are not beings. We are property, and we do not deserve names." the response came, dark and brooding. Nobody could think that way. Not about themselves, anyway. "Well," I mused. "That fat son-of-a-bitch must have survived. I'm going to have to be more thorough next time." The Luxray smiled. "You have no chance of reaching the master. He is safe from you, now and forever." I suppressed a chuckle. "Not even the gods could keep me from finding him. Not after what he did to me."

The Luxray let out a deep growl, to which I responded in kind. "Enough talk!" He boomed, his eyes lighting from within. "We finish this now!" I shrugged nonchalantly as he charged me, and everything went dark. I heard the sounds of battle, as if from a great distance. When my vision returned, I was standing over the fallen Luxray, poised to kill. "Last chance," I spoke through clenched teeth. "Give up or I kill you." He didn't respond, so I took the initiative. Focusing my psychic power, I shattered the collar around his neck. The result was instantaneous.

His eyes changed, reverting to their deep yellow colour. He looked around, confused. "Where am I?" he asked. I relaxed, moving away from the wounded Pokémon. I looked to see Ethan and Silver trying to stand. Ethan caught my eye. "What the hell happened?" he asked. I shrugged. "Long story short, I got a visit from an old friend. We, uh, got reacquainted while you two were asleep." Silver groaned. "How many of these 'friends' do you have? I am sick and tired of fighting fair. I want my unfair advantage back." I smiled, glancing at the recovering Luxray. "Well, guys, do we keep him?" They nodded. "There is strength in numbers. And, well, we have strength without numbers. "With four of us, nothing will stand a chance!"

I watched as the Luxray struggled to his feet. He lurched over, unsteady legs threatening to fall out from under him. He collapsed at my feet, breathing heavily. "You asked me my name. I gave you the wrong answer. I am called Phoenix, and I would be honoured if you would forgive my actions. Those damn collars, they…they changed us." I felt a spur of the moment decision coming on, and punched him in the face. He fell back, stunned. "We're even now, Phoenix. You want to come with us? We could use your skill." He nodded, picking himself up off the ground. "If you mean it, then I will come. But I believe your other friends are in trouble."

My eyes flew open at the remark. "What! Null and Hazle are in danger?" He nodded. "Those bugs have cornered them in a mountain pass a good three kilometers from here. I will take you there if you wish." I shook my head. I looked to Ethan, who nodded. "We'll go find them. You two stay here and wait." Before I could respond, there was a massive flash of light and the two were gone. I glanced once at their fast receding shapes in the sky, envious of their power of flight. "I wonder how it feels to fly…"

Ethan and Silver soon returned, carrying a wounded Null and Hazle on their backs. I noticed that Lyra was still gone. "Uh, guys? Lyra?" The two exchanged glances, and Silver looked back at me with sorrowful eyes. "She…didn't make it." I lowered my gaze. "Damn…" Silver was looking sadly in the direction they had come from. I could tell what he was thinking, and I learned of the relationship the two had. All that was ended because of my failure. I was so engrossed in my thoughts that I almost jumped when I heard Hazle's voice. "Did you forget about me already? Come here, I think I broke my leg." I nodded in her general direction when I heard a gasp from Null.

I rushed over to her, finding her curled up in a ball, blood flowing from her various cuts and scrapes. As I reached her, she let out a cry of pain; and she began to shiver violently. I knelt beside her and knew almost immediately what the problem was. Poison. "Aw fuck me sideways…" I noted several quizzical looks from the others. "It's an expression. Now, does anyone have an antidote? Maybe a Pecha berry?" The two humans shook their heads. "Bone dry over here." "Well of fucking course we don't have any antidotes here." Null yelped as the poison destroyed her body from the inside out. I knew she would die if we didn't help her soon. But we had no way to help her. I was close to giving up hope when I felt another presence in the grass around us.

I slid into a defensive crouch as a Latias swept out of the bushes. I sank lower to the ground, ready to spring. And suddenly I was floating up in the air. _Psychic. _I laughed internally, and shattered the attack. I landed lightly, ready for a follow-up attack. But the Latias smiled. "I'm Rose. Looks like you need help." To punctuate the words, Null let out another agonized scream. I nodded, relief flooding into my veins. I turned away, glancing quickly at my human companions. Both had slipped unconsciously into defensive stances, and Silver had grasped what looked like a knife. They relaxed, slightly, as the Latias went to work healing Null. Hazle, still on the ground, did the same.

"Perfect timing, I guess." I said, walking over to the Espeon. She smiled at me. "What would you have done had she not shown up?" I shrugged. "Not much I could have done. So, I'm not going to burden myself with Ifs." She nodded weakly. "So, are you going to help me? Or wait for her to finish?" I frowned. "I actually don't know if I can heal others. But, there's always a first for everything." I sat down next to her, placing my paw over her injured leg. She shivered on the contact, but remained still enough for me to focus. I closed my eyes, picturing her leg repairing itself. My eyes remained shut; so I was unawares that I had begun to glow slightly. I felt a jolt of pain in my own leg, and when it subsided, I opened my eyes.

Hazle was standing worriedly above me, her leg fully repaired. I rose to my feet, casting a questioning glance at her. I noticed the Latias, Rose, hovering behind her, also watching me. "What's wrong?" I asked, sweeping my eyes around for threats. "You've been on the ground for two hours! That's what's wrong. We feared you were…remembering more… You had a pained look on your face, we were worried." I shook my head. "No, it wasn't more memories. Just regular pain." Rose was looking at the two of us like we were crazy. Her confusion was palpable, and so thick you could cut it. I thought about explaining everything to her, but changed my mind at the last moment. How could I answer questions when I myself did not know the answers? Lucky for me, she made the decision herself. "I don't even want to know…"

I rose slowly to my feet, my legs surprisingly shaky beneath me. "So, how's Null?" I asked offhandedly, searching the surrounding area for threats. I heard a laugh from behind me. "Ask her yourself, Tal!" I spun, sinking into a playful crouch. Null and Phoenix stood there, watching me. Phoenix had a faint hint of suspicion in his eyes, while Null seemed genuinely happy for the first time in ages. She laughed again. "Rose taught me a thing or two about psychology, and now I am my own anti-depressant." I was about to laugh in return when I felt something that did not belong. I turned, but too late.

A booted foot impacted on my face, appearing out of thin air. I was sent flying, thudding into the ground a moment later. I rolled to my feet, glancing around quickly for my attacker. The others did the same. I heard a footstep behind me, and once again spun too late. I heard a noise the likes of which I had not heard in a long time. A gun. Several bullets impacted along my body, a thousand white hot pinpricks. And everything went black.

When I came to, several blue armoured bodies surrounded me. I noticed that they all carried guns. A shooting squad. I resisted the urge to swear, aware that Rose was still around. She materialized in front of me, her eyes immediately locking onto mine. We stared at each other for a long moment, before she broke the silence. "Holy fucking shit! How in Arceus' name did you do that?" I looked away, mumbling "You don't want to know." She recoiled, as if struck. Her eyes seemed to glaze over for a moment. "What happened indeed…" she muttered, blinking herself back into reality. She shook her head violently. "Well, I'm here to stay for a while. Arceus wants me to keep an eye on you." I shrugged, indifferent. "Just stay out of my way."

Examining one of the dead soldiers' breastplates, I found a group of co-ordinates, along with a serial number of sorts. Under that was a name. The name was stamped into all the soldiers' armour, so it could not be a personal name. _Infinus._ That was the name of the ones who had tormented me. And they had just lead me straight to their base. A dark smile spread across my face. This could be fun.

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**A new character! Ooh! The story is starting to really pick up now, and this little event is going to lead to a catastrophic chain of events that will end up {CENSORED-}! But thats a long ways off.**

**I would like to thank a certain guard of the twilight for inspiring me to continue writing LoT. I had all but given up on it until I read some of his stories. Everyone! Go check them out! **

**Until next time, this is Infinity WEAPON, begging for pie. I mean... signing off. Yeah, thats it... signing off...**


	9. The four horsemen

**Ah, finished at last. Longest. Story. EVER! 4,555 words, not counting bolded hellos and goodbyes. Damn long. In any case, enjoy.**

**Disclaimer-I do not own Pokemon. I only own the OCs used withing this story. This, of course, does NOT include Ethan, Silver, and Lyra. They belong to whoever made Pokemon in the first place. Japan.**

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Chapter 8: The four horsemen**

We had been traveling near to a week, isolated from the rest of the world. Tal more so than the rest of us. He didn't eat much; he never talked to us, and every so often I would catch a look in his eye that had never been there before. I feared he was going crazy. But after what seemed like ages, we reached the base. Almost.

"How the hell do we get up there? The door is fifty feet straight up! There's no way we can get up there!" Tal just smiled at the comment. "Not if you were planning on walking…" Moments later, we were standing inside the first security checkpoint. I'm not going to go into the details of how we got there. I really don't want to think about it. Let's just say it involved lots of purple.

As I was saying, we were inside the first security checkpoint. The guards at the monitors had drawn guns against us, but in the blink of an eye they were slammed into walls with their own guns pointed at their helmeted faces. Sensing a fight in the future, I took the time to reach into myself and take a firm hold of my shape shifting power. Always be ready.

My caution proved to be right, we were attacked many times. Yet, before I could even attempt a transformation, Tal simply blasted the soldiers back without breaking stride. He was starting to worry me.

Every so often, Tal and Phoenix would run down a side hallway, causing several explosions, before returning to the group again. Every time, Tal managed to cut himself on something, and I would watch with a strange fascination each time as the cuts and gashes sealed themselves shut in less than a minute. Tal truly was a frightening individual. I made a mental note to stay on his good side.

We were attacked once again, this time while Tal and Phoenix had run off. Giving over to my instincts, I transformed into the first thing that came to mind. A Gallade. It was a strange feeling, knowing that my arms had become lethal weapons. Beside me, Silver had changed into an Aggron. Facing us were ten _Infinus _soldiers, all of whom seemed to be more heavily armed than those near the base's entrance. One of them even carried a chaingun.

As they took aim, Silver crouched in front of us, using his bulletproof hide as a shield. I vaulted over him, stabbing two soldiers on the way down. I landed in a crouch, quickly slicing the feet out from under two more soldiers. I rolled to the side to avoid several salvos of shotgun shells, and as I came up I grabbed another soldier in a viselike grip, choking him. I grabbed the soldier's gun, and threw it at the man with the chaingun. It shattered his visor, knocking him out.

Dropping the soldier I had been chocking, I dashed foreword. Using my momentum, I caught one of the soldiers and slammed him into the ground while simultaneously slashing the neck of another. The last two soldiers were standing away from the rest of the group, wearing black armour and wielding strangely long rifles. I charged them, but before I could close the distance, they fired. The boom was incredible, shaking the ground around me. I saw the two bullets flying towards me at terminal velocity, and knew I had no chance too dodge them. I crossed my arms in front of my face, and waited for the pain I knew was coming.

I waited. And waited. Yet still the pain didn't come. I risked a look, and saw something utterly ridiculous. The bullets had stopped, spinning, in place. Inches from my face, the two hunks of metal revolved slowly. I noticed a strange purplish glow around them. Glancing behind me, I saw that Tal and Phoenix had returned.

One of the snipers tried to get off a second shot, but before he could pull the trigger the gun began to glow. It flew out of his hands, landing a few feet away. Shrugging slightly, I took advantage of the opportunity to charge the snipers. Sprinting foreword, I stabbed one in the side of the neck and sliced the other along the side of the head. Their armour stopped me from killing them, but I still did a lot of damage. Skidding to a halt behind the two, I spun, grabbing the less hurt of the two in a chokehold. The other was slammed into the wall by my psychic friend. There was a crunching noise, as if several of his bones had broken at the same time. Grunting slightly, I heaved the sniper over my shoulder, knocking him out.

Flexing my bladed arms, I looked over at Tal. "You find anything?" I asked. He nodded, motioning for me to follow. The entire group did. Tal led us down a series of hallways, rooms, and what seemed to be ventilation ducts, before stopping in front of some weird circular machine. How such a thing could help us, I did not know. Seeing my confused look, Tal elaborated. ''It's a teleportation device. First working model in the world. And it leads to the center of the base, deep into the mountain. We have to go through this to get to the reactor level and command level."

Phoenix pressed a button on the side of the device, and an electrical currant began to arc through the opening. There was a flash of light, and a deafening boom. When I looked back at the device, it was filled with swirling green, blue, and purple light. In the very center, a small black orb. Tal motioned for us to proceed, and steeling myself, I walked through the portal. And everything went black.

**THE REST OF THIS CHAPTER WILL BE SHOWN FROM DIFFERENT POVs. **

**AT THE BEGINNING OF EACH SEGMENT I WILL STATE WHO's POV IT IS FOCUSED ON**

**Silver**

Stepping through the portal, I felt the ground pull away from my feet. I had the sensation of floating, before once again being slammed into cold metal. I opened my eyes, not aware that I had closed them. I looked around, surveying the surrounding area for threats. Ethan and Rose, who had gone through before me, were nowhere to be found. Neither were the other members of the party, yet I could feel that I was not alone. I grasped my navaja and kukri knives lightly, beginning a more in depth scan of the area.

The hallway I was standing in was narrow, less than five feet wide. Its walls were covered in electrical wiring and pipes, and there were few lights on the ceiling. About fifty feet away, a small door was set into a wall. That seemed to be the only exit. Yet I could not shake the feeling that I was being watched. Pulling my knives from their sheaths, I started to move as stealthily as possible to the end of the hallway, all the while looking for any nooks where an opponent might hide. Finding nothing, I reached the end of the hallway and stepped through the door.

On the other side, I was met with an arena. Blazing lights overhead lit the entire room as if it was above ground, basking in the sun. The lights were arranged in such a way the no shadows were cast by anything. The floor and walls, polished to mirror sheens, reflected the light, making the room painful to stand in. My eyes, accustomed to the relative darkness of the rest of the complex, began to water. About halfway up the room, the wall stopped, expanding backwards to form a floor for rows of seats to be placed. The seats, made of the darkest material I had ever seen, were almost invisible. Had the room not been so well lit, no one could tell they were there.

And, of course, I still felt as if I was being watched. Walking into the center of the arena, I knelt down. Placing my knives on the floor, I began to scan the arena with my mind. Yet still I turned up nothing. Until I heard the sound of metal striking metal. The sound was soft, faint, as if whatever it belonged to was trying to avoid being found. But it was enough for me to know what I was up against. A robot, android, or someone in a mechanized suit. Smiling, I grasped my knives, rose, and spoke up. "You're not very stealthy, you know."

**Phoenix**

Stepping through the vortex of energy disoriented me, scrambling my senses. When I opened my eyes, Null and Hazle were next to me, drowsily trying to move foreword. Using my limited psionic abilities, I managed to snap them out of their delirium. It would do me no good to have incapacitated teammates. As I had warned Tal, the teleportation device had separated the group. A prototype' a prototype after all. Glancing around, I found that we were in a small, enclosed room, about the size of an elevator. One wall was replaced by a doorway, another by a window. Out the window, I saw a large auditorium like room, with rows of seating at one end and a stage at the other.

Standing on the stage was a man in a black robe. Arms crossed, he was watching me expectantly. A medium sized, angular knife was clenched in one of his hands; a bladed glove covered the other. Despite the distance between us, I could feel his eyes boring into me, searching me. I was uncomfortable at the prospect.

Turning back to my companions, I nodded for them to proceed down the hallway, and find a way down. Once they had left, I sealed the door behind them with a jolt of electricity. The two sliding panels welded themselves together. I turned back to the window, and charged.

**Ethan**

Opening my eyes, I felt an intense pain al over my body. Mind numbing pain seared through my veins, flowing through my body like a currant. I shook violently; doing everything I could to avoid screaming. I ground my teeth together, clenched my hands into fists, and waited. And after what seemed like an eternity, the pain ceased.

I stood up slowly; testing my body to make sure it wouldn't shut down. Finding no problems, I shrugged my shoulders. I looked around, watching for threats. Still in my Gallade form, I felt certain that I could take on any opponent in this base. But surprise attacks could still be fatal. And I was alone.

As I began to walk, I heard an annoying buzzing noise. There seemed to be words to it, but I couldn't make them out. I began to walk faster, searching actively for an exit. All the while, the buzzing got louder. It got to the point where it would drive me crazy, and I snapped, lashing out at a pipe on the wall. The blades on my arm left a gash, out of which poured steam.

And through the steam, I saw a shape. A void, where steam did not go. Vaguely the shape of a Latias… "Rose?" I asked, drawing my arms up in a defensive stance. The figure nodded. The buzzing in my ears got louder, more intense. And I could make out the words to it. "Hello? CAN YOU HEAR ME?" I chuckled. "Yes, Rose, I can hear you now." The figure relaxed, and Rose materialized. "I was getting worried about you. Most people don't have the mental capacity to understand mentalist conversations. It's good to see that we can communicate silently."

Rolling my eyes at the concept, I continued down the hallway, asking if she could contact Tal or Silver. She shook her head. "I don't have the kind of power it takes to contact long distance. I doubt Silver has that ability. Tal, on the other hand, could contact anyone, anywhere, anytime. It's just a matter of if he _wants _to." The comment had a ring of truth to it. The overpowered loner. Original, I know.

The hallway came to an abrupt end, stopping at a wire covered door set into the wall. Breathing a silent sigh of relief, I grabbed the end of the door and shoved it to the side. Stepping through the door was like stepping into another world.

Plants of many different varieties and sizes crowded the room, ranging from grass to gigantic trees, and everything in between. Fruit bearing plants and various weeds waged an epic battle for control of the football field sized room, which was lit from above by many UV lights. I wandered among the shadows, aware that anything could be hiding in the dense foliage. Rose seemed to have the same idea, as she had turned invisible.

I listened as intently as I could, trying to make the noises of my body disappear. I was sure that something was stalking me, but I had little evidence on that front. Until I heard the scream. I spun, raising my arms, to see Rose plummet from the sky, smoking slightly. I looked around quickly, just before an arc of electricity slammed into my shoulder.

**Tal**

I smiled, evilly, at the Director, advancing on him slowly. My power, slowly going rampant, began to fire off at random times, burning some random computer. My revenge was at hand. But it was not to be.

The Director, eyes fixed on me, failed to notice the man standing, sword drawn, behind him. As the Director got closer and closer, the man tensed, and eventually, lunged. I watched, horrified, as my revenge was stolen away in an instant. The blade plunged into the Director's back, coming back out his chest after piercing his heart. All my time, wasted. The Director gave a final, strangled cry, and died.

The sword retracted, and the man kicked the dead Director to the floor. A pool of blood began to form. I felt a familiar rage bubble to the surface, aimed at this mysterious man. He was bristling with blades, including the katana he had used to kill the Director. Among them were four kukri knives, one on each arm and two crossed on his chest, two gunong strapped to his legs, along with a bandolier-like strap covered in throwing knives. Strapped behind his waist was a wakizashi. A man of the blade, to say the least.

**Ethan**

The jolt sent me flying into a tree, slamming my spine into the thick trunk of an oak. I fell heavily to the ground, my body screaming in pain. I looked up to see a person clothed in what appeared to be a HAZMAT suit. On its arms were two electrode-like devices, clearly what had shocked me. Metal extended up the person's arms, before lacing into a partial vest on its chest.

The person saw me standing, and the electrodes flared to life. Blue electricity flared all around the person, the occasional stray arc hitting me, forcing me to clench my fist and grind my teeth in pain. I knew I couldn't take much of that pain. I rolled behind the tree to rest, only to have a blot of electricity arc _around _the tree to hit me. The hit caught me completely off guard, and I was blown to my feet. I hit the ground hard, and stars danced in my eyes.

**Phoenix**

"And so, _quattuor_ _equitatus_ awaken." I said grimly. The name fit too perfectly. The man in front of me was Wraith. Capable of becoming invisible. Largely considered the second most dangerous human alive. I had little doubt that Tal could trounce the overconfident lunatic. But I was not nearly as powerful as him. Wraith ruffled his cloak at the comment, and nodded solemnly. "The master has plans for us now. We can remain dormant no longer."

"We don't have to fight, Wraith. We were friends once, we can be again." Even as the words spilled from my mouth, I knew that they could never become a reality. Wraith smiled, holding up his knife. On it was the _Infinus _logo, the scalpel and syringe. Below that, the _quattuor equitatus_ had been engraved, three swords crossing, forming three separate spaces. Filling them were the icons of the respective soldiers. Wraith's cloak and dagger, Volt's electrodes, and Tank's various guns. The swords themselves represented Kengou, the group's resident swordsman and leader.

The knowledge that _Infinus _had dispatched their most powerful assassins to kill us was disheartening. No doubt they could cause damage to the group while we were separated. A bad omen, if there ever was one. And with them involved, things would only get worse. I could only hope the others had remained in a group.

Wraith moved like a dancer, graceful, stealthy. When he activated his stealth, he was impossible to detect. He seemed to calculate every step, and because of that never activated any kind of trap. He was a force to be reckoned with on his own, let alone with backup.

I slid into a defensive stance, charging up for an attack. Wraith noticed, and disappeared. I tried to sniff him out, but he seemed to have filled the room with some kind of gas. I could only smell charcoal. I looked around, still charging. Wraith moved fast, and could attack at any moment. I had no intention of getting stabbed.

I heard a footstep, and a whooshing noise as a knife descended. I rolled away from the noise, turned, and fired of a shot of electricity. I hit my mark, and the knife flew through the air, damaged. It shattered when it hit the ground, breaking into a hundred tiny pieces. Strangely, both logos survived. Wraith remained unseen.

**Ethan**

"I am Volt! I am your worst nightmare! You will _not _survive this battle, of that you can be certain." The voice was distinctly female. I groaned as another bolt hit me, knocking me back to the ground in pain. I could already feel most of my muscles become paralyzed. Soon, the electricity would stop my heart. I couldn't let that happen. Gathering my strength, I prepared to charge.

I made it less then a foot before I was hit with another bolt of electricity, slamming me to the ground. My vision began to dim, and I could feel my heartbeat become more and more erratic. I tried to rise, only to be hit with another bolt. After that, my vision went completely, leaving me blind. I felt the ground shake as the person approached me, sending me into a state of mild panic.

Though I didn't know it, my breathing had become shallow, and my heart had nearly stopped. I was almost dead. My senses had flat lined; I was dead in the water, so to speak. And then, the strangest thing happened.

**Silver**

I turned, blades in hand, to face my opponent. The man was wearing a black and red suit of armour, towering a good ten feet into the air. Bristling with guns, the suit looked like it could take on a battalion of tanks and survive. Several RPG and rocket launchers were mounted on the suit's shoulders, a very large machine gun was strapped to one of its arms, and a small tube was mounted on the other.

The man let out a booming laugh. "Neither are you, friend. The unstoppable force, versus the immovable object. I've waited a long, long time for this moment." I smirked, flipping my kukri blade foreword. I left the navaja in a backhand grip. "Well then, I'd better not keep you waiting…" I spoke the words in hushed tones, moving slightly to the left as I spoke. The moment I finished, I lunged. The man, unprepared, made no move to stop me as I jammed the kukri into his suit, severing wires and causing a tiny bolt of electricity to hit me.

Before I could pull the knife back out, however, the suit sprang into action, kicking me away.

I was launched into the air, painfully, and I hit the wall with a dull thud. I dropped to the ground, still holding my navaja. The hilt dug painfully into the palm of my hand. I twirled it lightly, flicking the blade foreword. I hurled the knife, straight into the helmet of the armoured suit.

The entire thing began to shudder, several of the weapons misfired. I narrowly dodged a rocket, which slammed into the wall and exploded, giving me an exit. The suit continued to shake and spasm, as if alive, before collapsing in a heap. I dashed towards it, grabbing my knives, and ran through the hole in the wall. It led into another maintenance hallway.

**Phoenix**

I could not hit my target. He moved to fast, attacking and disappearing before I could do any major damage. I could not hit him dead on, such a feat was impossible with his invisibility. I had to think up a plan, and fast. I dodged another strike, and another, all the while thinking of a way to win. The odds were stacked against me, and I was starting to tire. Soon, I would be beaten.

That's when it hit me. He didn't actually disappear; he simply created an illusion of invisibility. He was still there. An area attack would hit him. Now I was kicking myself for not figuring that out earlier. It was so simple, so obvious.

I began charging my attack, charging above and beyond the general safety limit set by my ancestors and friends. I had one shot; otherwise he would counter attack me. The power started to leave my body in a slow stream. My body began to glow, encased in a cocoon of electricity. And I released my restraint.

Lightning flashed out, filling the room. A shape appeared where no electricity flowed. Guiding the arcs, I shaped them into a single beam and shot all the electricity at the shape. The massive bolt broke up, surrounding the target, causing it to shriek in agony. Wraith appeared, his cloaked body smoking as the electricity burned him. But as quickly as the storm had started, it was over.

The electricity vanished, and Wraith slumped to the ground, still smoking. I was breathing heavily, my strength and stamina all but gone. If Wraith managed to get up, I wouldn't be able to attack him.

A door at the rear of the room opened, and a rush of cool air eased my breathing. "Phoenix! We found a way out!" I turned, Hazle and Null were standing in the door, the controls of which were sparking and smoking. I nodded slowly, to tired to speak. The two disappeared down a hallway, and I was forced to follow.

Behind me, Wraith began to rise.

**Ethan**

I can only describe it as a vision, a dream. I was in an ancient Japanese dojo, facing a martial arts instructor. The man had short, black hair, deep emerald eyes, and looked to be about fifty years old. He was wearing a sterile white robe, devoid of any colour. I looked down at myself, and saw that I was wearing black clothes. My hands were covered in black leather gloves, but my feet were bear. The man seemed to be waiting for me to make a move.

It dawned on me that we were fighting. Training. In what I had no idea, for what I had no idea. His eyes narrowed, and my body seemed to fall into a groove. My left leg slid back, my right leg bent slightly. My hands went up in front of my face, clenched into light fists. All my muscles clenched; my entire body ready to move.

My body moved without my mind's control. Everything seemed to happen on its own. It was as if I was watching a movie, through the eyes of one character. I closed my eyes, and when I opened them, I was watching the two men fight. And as soon as it started, it ended. The two bowed to each other, and left. Time passed, and they re-appeared. Again, they fought.

This cycle continued, for what seemed to be years. I unconsciously started to memorize the techniques they used, how they moved. More time passed. Eventually, the man in white started to get slow. He aged. Eventually, the man in black took his place, fighting with younger people.

And then: I heard a voice. A voice that seemed familiar, yet at the same time forgotten. It was the strangest feeling. "Ethan! Ethan, get up!" Feminine. The voice belonged to a girl. Another, lower voice spoke up. "Damnit Ethan! Don't die on me!" I sighed, closing my eyes. I had to think. When I opened them, I was back in reality.

Silver, Rose, and Null were standing over me. Figuratively speaking. I smiled weakly. "Hey guys…" There was a collective sigh of relief. I pushed myself into a seated position, and immediately regretted the move. My head started to swim, and stars seemed to dance in front of my eyes. There seemed two of everything.

I looked down. I was human again. My arm was glowing softly. As I watched, the glow intensified, and my vision cleared. My dizziness abated, and I managed to stand. "So, what now?"

**Tal**

"You still haven't told me your name," I said, still watching the man. He was unstable, prone to violence. I had already seen him cut down anyone he saw. Perhaps he was like me. He had shoulder length brown hair, the tips of which were deep, midnight black. He had a smooth tan, and deep red eyes. I noted early on that he was one of few who did not balk at my stare.

He shook his head. "Names have no meaning around here. You can call me Kengou. Sword master." The name caused me to grin slightly. What a perfect name. "Next question then, why are you here?" He glanced back. "Same as you. Revenge." The words made me shudder. I knew they stemmed from what happened to me.

A man started towards us, looking at a clipboard. When he looked up, he froze, turned, and ran. A throwing knife nailed him in the back of the head. He dropped foreword, a puddle of blood forming around him. I looked away, not wanted the image of innocent blood to stain my memories. I heard a sickening squelch as Kengou pulled the knife free.

The way he treated his own kind sickened me. It enforced my resolve to kill him. After I got more information. "Who do you want revenge on?" The man twirled the bloody knife, before hurling into the wall. "These people have wronged me. And I will destroy them all." He pulled a small, clunky object from his belt. There was a button on one side, and a signal wire at the top. The word Kaboom had been written in blood on the front.

He clicked the button, and all hell broke loose.

* * *

**Ah, the humble cliffhanger strikes again! **

**Explanations of names: Kengou: sword master in japanese. Wakizashi, katana, kukri, navaja, and gunong: Knives and swords from different cultures and countries. Q_uattuor_ _equitatus: _Latin words for 'The four horsemen'. More on that later. **

**In other news, have you ever wanted a cool OC made by someone else in your story? Well, I have a proposition for people like that! If you want, I will let you use Tal! On two conditions. You notify me of your use of him, and YOU HAVE TO SAY THAT ALL RIGHTS TO HIM BELONG TO ME IN YOUR STORY! If someone doesn't stick to these, I will be very angry with them. **

**Looking back, I remembered putting a reference to Final Fantasy Advent Children back in Chapter 5. How has nobody noticed that before? Srlsy, it was so obvious. The scene it came from was iconic. Go find that reference. If you don't, you are not fit to read the rest of this story. Seriously!**

**WEAPON, out. **


	10. Escape and Aftermath

**Good news everyone! LoT has officially been around for more than two months now! To celebrate, I am opening a new poll! A question will be added every time I update LoT or any of my other stories (For which I have many planned), And I expect much more than two people to vote in this one! You have all disapointed me with that one. Shame on you! D:**

**Chapter 9: Escape and aftermath**

An explosion rumbled through the underground base, destroying important equipment and weakening the structure of the building. Several steam and water vents burst as the flames heated them. The explosives had been arranged so that they would cause numerous secondary explosions throughout the facility, causing untold havoc. Walls too close to the centre of the blasts were leveled, and cave-ins were heard all throughout the base. These guys had on hell of a good demolitions expert. Scary stuff.

Kengou threw the detonator away, laughing maniacally. I braced myself against a wall as another explosion rippled through the building, blasting the wall opposite me into pieces. A large shard almost managed to impale itself into my right eye. Almost. Kengou had disappeared behind a thick wall of steam. The laughter didn't stop.

"Do you hear them? The pearly bells of destruction? They call your name, friend. Do not keep them waiting." The words sent chills down my spine. I considered snapping him like the twig he was, but something stopped me. Maybe it was my subconscious saying that using telekinesis on something you can't see is dangerous. Maybe it was something else. His voice took a much less serious note to it. "In about twenty minutes, delayed explosives are going to knock out the generator of this complex. When they go off, they will detonate the nuclear core for the generator, leveling this base. You had better leave before then."

The steam cleared, revealing the swordsman. He had drawn his second sword, holding each in a backhand grip. He had his arms raised above his head, straight up, while he seemed to be searching the ceiling for something. He still had the manic grin on his face. "But nothing is ever that easy."

The warning barely registered before the attack was launched. I ducked to the side as the twin Japanese swords slammed into the wall where I had just been standing. The blades sliced two identical gashes into the tough metal. I had no doubt that it could do the same to me. A most unfamiliar sensation washed over me.

The knowledge that this person had even the slimmest chance of killing me, that I may not be able to walk away from this battle, did not scare me. I was almost excited, giddy with anticipation of an actual fight. An adrenaline rush doesn't even come close to describing the feeling. A large grin spread over my face.

The next attack was a scissor, both blades crossing. I dodged backward, avoiding the smaller sword but receiving a small cut from the longer one. I resisted the urge to scream. The thing hurt like hell! The tip of the blade came away bloody, causing another round of laughter to leave the crazed swordsman's mouth.

The laughter soon got on my nerves. "Just shut up!" Unfortunately, my outburst was accompanied by a burst of psionic energy. The offending mouth slammed shut, as if muzzled. The man's eyes widened, but then the grin intensified. He tossed the shorter wakizashi into the air; and in one fluid motion, drew and threw a throwing knife, before catching his airborne sword.

Dodging the flying knife forced me to drop my concentration, and the restraints around Kengou's mouth were released. His laughter returned. "Now now, you don't have to restrict my free speech. That's just wrong." Another blow, parallel to the floor. "Fighting is about respect." Another blow, perpendicular to the floor. "You could at least have the decency to ask me to stop!" Another two slashes, diagonal. None of the four attacks hit me, but I still felt a wound on my front. I looked to see an asterisk shape carved into my chest.

The man was smirking, his eyes seeming to have lost their manic look. "You will find that I am many different people. Each with different techniques and abilities. I am a much harder foe to defeat than any you have ever faced before. Remember that." I flexed my arms. "So smug, but for how long?"

I dodged another slice to the head, jumping out of the way a millisecond before the sword hit. I could feel my power rising, threatening to release itself. Shrugging, I let loose a barrage of ice spikes. Thrust into the defensive, Kengou had a momentary lapse in concentration, resulting in a cut along his shoulder. He sliced the other shards to pieces.

I could feel my body heating up, and I could see arcs of electricity traveling along my body. My abilities were manifesting themselves unwarranted. They were taking control. I had to end this before they managed that.

I picked up the errant swordsman with my psionic power, throwing him down the hall. I heard a clang as he hit the far wall. I noticed, out of the corner of my eye, several shiny objects in the steam. Too late, I realized that they were throwing knives. Three of them managed to hit me, twice on the left flank and once on the right front leg. My eyes watered at the impact, it felt as if I was being burned alive.

I growled, sending an overly-large fireball down the hall. "Enough of this!" I spun, running down the hallway. Several more explosions rippled through the building, causing more and more steam pipes to burst. Visibility was low, very low, so I resorted to psychic vision enhancements to see. Therefore, I was not surprised to run into Ethan.

"Tal? Is that you?" Rolling my eyes, I did what I should have done in the first place and blasted the steam out of the way. "Yes. Now, did you find an exit?" He nodded. "Silver and the others are waiting for us. We found a way to the surface. Why?" An explosion sounded in the background. "Imagine that, only a thousand times larger." Ethan's eyes widened. "Ya, uh, lets leave now…"

***Outside***

"Run! Now!" Ethan yelled over the increasingly large explosions, moments away from a total nuclear meltdown. Trust humans to use the deadliest form of power when free electricity is right around the corner. Turning back, I sealed the hole behind us. No one else would follow us. The four horsemen were doomed.

My internal clock was ticking down to fast, less than two minutes left before the reactor exploded. Kengou's words flashed back into my mind. _'In about twenty minutes…' _My eyes widened. We weren't going to make it. "Faster!" We were off the mountain, heading onto the desert plains around the base. Time seemed to slow. I spun around, unconsciously creating a shield around the group, as the delayed explosives activate.

The entire world seemed to shake as the reactor went critical, a huge cloud of light blasted out of every hole and crack in the mountain. There was a thunderous boom, a scorching heat, and the entire mountain blasted outwards. Rocks fell over us, bouncing off the shield I had created. Fires lit up the world, burning around the massive crater the explosion had created. In the sky, a giant green mushroom cloud of fire.

We had made it after all.

***Monolog time!***

We had won. A small victory, but a victory non the less. The base, in smoky ruins, had been completely purged of any computational data it had contained. _Quattuor_ _equitatus _had been wiped out.

The victory was bitter-sweet. While one _Infinus _base had been destroyed, many others littered the world. Too many for me or any of my friends to destroy. We had to either split up or ignore them. Either way, _Infinus_ soldiers would be actively seeking us out. Or lives would not be peaceful again for a long time.

In the end, we sent Silver to Hoenn, and Phoenix to Sinnoh. I would remain in Johto, while Ethan went to Kanto. Null chose to go with Phoenix, while Rose went with Ethan. Hazle remained with me.

Ethan released all but one of his Pokémon. He kept Ronin, who was too lazy to fly long distances. Silver had long ago done the same, only keeping his Typhlosion. After his last battle against Ethan, he had smashed the ball, allowing Mina to follow him willingly, or leave.

Every now and then, Ethan would report sighting soldiers in blue armour, but he never managed to track down any bases. Silver and I had the same problem. Only Phoenix managed to find anything, but the base was abandoned long before he reached it.

The world, nearing crisis mode, was shocked about the nuclear explosion, and blamed it on an extremist cult. None of us felt the need to correct them. Several research crews were dispatched to the crater to find out what had happened, but no one managed to find the whole truth. The fact that the metal in the base had been vaporized simply raised more questions.

As the fallout began to contaminate large portions of the world, many people were killed. Several more were contaminated. The Pokémon population dropped drastically, and many of the survivors were sick. Some mutated, others passed away from the effects of the radiation.

After many false leads, I decided to return to EVE to report a mission failure. I had been gone for nearly six months, and many believed that my team had been killed. With Null and Ritch gone, nobody was willing to send more to finish the mission.

I was passed out of the Academy, having learned everything they could teach me and more in the field, and I was given to the militia as a 'gift'. In the end, they retired me after only a few weeks.

I lived quietly, peacefully for five years, living off the land. Few bothered me. Until, a catastrophe struck the nation.

All out war. The very thought seemed to lighten my step, which was more than enough to worry me. Either I was becoming as sadistic as those who had used me, or simply the idea of anyone challenging me was so ridiculous it was bordering on humorous. I suppose I'm getting off track here, ranting about myself.

Despite the relative peace surrounding us, EVE was a major target to many Pokémon nations. The bugs, who I had largely defeated many years prior, had re-established their army. The electric nation had resorted to a form of propaganda. This caused a boom in the militia of surrounding nations, bringing the chance of full scale war to the highest it had been in years. Eventually, as all things do, the mere crisis boiled over, reforming into a disaster.

But, unknown by the other nations, EVE had a secret weapon. Me. I would have preferred to be left out of the war, or at the very least had my presence revealed _before _everything went to hell, but you can't get everything you want.

In the end, EVE resorted to guerilla style tactics. They ambushed and destroyed small assault groups, overwhelming them. Anything to large for the standard militia to handle was passed along to me. I would wipe the attackers out, leaving no one to reveal my presence to the enemy. These tactics would only work for so long. Eventually, real battles would take place. And EVE would crumble under the weight of so many.

In an effort to end the war, I was sent to various nations to negotiate peace. Should negotiations break down, I would 'remove' a member of the chain of command. Over time, this slowed enemy advancements into our territory. Troop movements became sloppy, making even large groups targets for the guerillas.

We never managed to negotiate a surrender, despite the losses the other nations were facing. EVE's population remained largely unchanged. Casualty counts on all other sides were climbing drastically, resulting in many nations relying on conscription to fuel their ranks. This, of course, caused a major disruption to my moral compass. Killing trained soldiers was one thing. Killing civilians was another. I made it clear that I would not harm civilians in any way. The higher ups agreed with this decision.

The war continued, longer and longer. I was starting to feel very tired, as if I was losing the will to fight. My reaction time slowed involuntarily. Eventually, my body stopped fighting. The war had gone on too long.

***Back to real time***

My eyes fluttered open, close to sightless. Everything was blurry, out of focus. Either I had gone a little bit overboard on the drinks last night, or my vision was the next target of my overloaded body. I rolled my eyes, and everything lit up. Blue lines outlined every object around me, and many objects behind closed doors and walls. I smiled as my psychic abilities lit up the darkness, so to speak. The things I can do with my mind often astound even me.

My stomach growled, interrupting my thoughts. Hunger, unfortunately, had a habit of attacking me when I woke up. Shrugging off the feeling, I went in search of food. As usual, Hazle had left me breakfast.

The two of us had been living together since we returned from our mission, sharing a small cave near the EVE command center. She worked as a scout in her spare time, but she was more often working as a cook for the militia. She made a mean Sitrus soup.

Our schedules were vastly different, with her getting up early to make hundreds of breakfasts, while I was allowed to sleep in as late as I wanted. We generally only saw each other late at night, when she was returning from whatever duty she had that day.

As I ate, my eyes roamed across the room, taking in the details I had seen to many times before. My life was getting boring. My eyes, as always, locked onto the small egg in the corner of the room. My egg. The thought brought a smile to my lips, however faint. I was going to be a father soon.

At the risk of sounding clichéd, the egg wasn't exactly 'our fault'. EVE, a short while ago, had given a command to _all_ couples in the nation to procreate, just in case a massive attack should damage our overall population. I have to admit, the plan was sound. But that doesn't mean it was something we would have done on our own.

Finishing the last of my food, I walked over to the egg. As I did every day, I pressed my forehead lightly onto its surface, scanning around mentally for the budding mind I knew it contained. As usual, I found nothing. Either the egg was dead, or my mind wasn't the knife it used to be. I was afraid to admit either.

Shaking my head, I left the now cramped cave, venturing into the sunlight. As usual, the light was temporarily blinding. My vision returned, and I looked around at the tall grass and hills that surrounded my home. The breeze wafted through the green grasses and yellow plants. This place was truly worth preserving. And the war would scar it forever.

Almost immediately after leaving the cave, I felt that something was wrong. I felt something, deep in the wilderness. A powerful presence. And near it, a presence I had not felt for five years.

I ran over the lip of a small hill, using the grass to mask my movements. Up ahead, I could see a green and white shape, standing tall among the waving plants. There was a flash of blue, and the shape staggered, falling backwards. Behind it, a blue Gallade.

Ethan smiled, changing back into his human form. A red shape materialized behind him, winking conspiratorially at me. "Rose, Ethan," I said. "Why are you here?" His eyes darkened. "I think we better take this inside."

***OC time!***

"Tango 31, Tango 58, status?" A grin. "This is Tango 31, I'm ready for drop." A hoot. "This is Tango 58, prepped for drop." A crackle over the comm. "Alright, begin mission in 3." A clank as the gun eats the mag. "2" A metallic grating as the rear door begins to open. "1" The door booms as it stops, down as far as it will go. "0. Begin mission!"

We run to the end of the ramp. We jump, hand flat against our sides. We fall, head first, to the ground far below. After a moment of falling, we cross our arms over our chests. After another moment, we pull the twin parachute cords. The massive sheets flair out behind us, open in an instant. We jolt backwards, stars in our eyes. And we land softly, discarding our 'chutes and rolling away. All in a days work.

I roll lightly to my feet, pulling off my blue helmet and letting my long, raven hair flow free. Jack, behind me, does the same. His short, blond hair frames his face well, matching his deep yellowish eyes. A smile, a nod. We raise our weapons, and move out.

Our first opponent, a soldier in black armour, charges around a corner. I kick him in the stomach; Jack shoots him in the face. The blinding flash and roar of the gunfire exhilarate us. I nod at my partner, we move on. All in a days work.

I draw my knife, he draws his. We move in concert, trained to be one. We round a corner, weapons ready, and, finding nothing, move on. The mission is all that matters. We do not talk during the mission. We do not hesitate during the mission. That is our way. We are the _miles militis of veneration._

I hear a clank. I spin, only to be tackled to the ground by a Luxray. It lands on me, going for my neck. I roll, knocking it off. I jump to my feet, bringing my gun down with one hand, while the other grasps my knife. I press the weapons to the Pokémon's temple and throat, fully prepared to finish it. Something stops me, so I instead bash it into unconsciousness. We move on.

I replace my helmet, locking it into place with a flick of my wrist. Targeting data floods onto my HUD, momentarily disorienting me. A picture of the target flashes on screen. A young male with red hair. Memorizing his features, his deep red eyes, his haughty bearing. With a smile, I tear off the helmet, clipping it to the back of my armour.

With a nod towards Jack, I move on. He follows. We round a corner, safeties off, and find a bizarre scene. A larger squad of blue armoured figures standing before us. Their armour was a darker hue than my own, and a strange symbol adorned their shoulders. And they were getting slaughtered.

Five of the soldiers were slumped over, leaning on makeshift barricades. From where we were, I could see gashes all over them. It wasn't hard to see that they were dead. And the thirteen men still standing were spinning around randomly, searching for someone.

There was a flash of light, a screech of metal on metal, and a roar of gunfire. I dropped down onto my stomach, and saw another two soldiers fall. From the looks of it, their throats had been slashed. The remaining soldiers began firing into every corner of the street, going completely trigger crazy.

I heard another screech, and spun. One of the soldiers had what appeared to be a sword stuck though him, but there was nothing behind him. The sword was only visible because of the blood that coated the blade. One of the soldiers spun, tossing a brick-like object towards the impaled man.

The result was instantaneous. A man clothed in silver and white armour appeared, holding the sword impaled into the soldier. A helmet obscured his face. He kicked the soldier off of his sword, flourishing it elaborately. I could imagine the sneer on his face.

Looking harder, I saw another sword strapped behind the man's waist, along with several throwing knives on his belt. My eyes narrowed, and I rose into a half crouch. Why were the soldiers simply standing and watching? The moment I thought that, he moved.

He moved at impossible speeds, slicing one of the soldiers' necks. He seemed to blur out of existence, he went so fast. The soldiers, remembering themselves, started to fire in his direction. The sword came around, twirling, leaving an after-image as it deflected the bullets. The man was crouched, facing away from the soldiers. Such a feat was incredible.

There was a peal of dark, manic laughter. The man, still deflecting bullets behind his back, reached up. He grasped the bottom of his helmet, and there was a squeal of compressed air escaping. The helmet flew off, followed by a white gas that quickly dispersed into the air.

Before I could get a good look at his face, he sprang back onto the attack. The soldiers, dazed by the cloud of what appeared to be stun gas, made no move to stop the man in silver as he darted around, slicing them to bits. It was over in seconds.

All the soldiers were collapsed, bleeding. The man in silver was standing there, in the middle of the field of corpses, laughing. He ran his bloody sword along his forearm, cleaning it. The blade had a faint red tint. His hair was brown.

Brown tipped with black.

* * *

**Sorry about extroing and re-introing the same character in the same chapter, but hey, beggers can't be choosers. This new character, who I am asking YOU to name, is designed to mimic Emma from my Halo fanfiction. Obviously, that name is OUT OF THE QUESTION! Just send me a message or review telling me what you want to name her. UPDATE: Since noone has even tried, I have shut that down. She Is now named Alice, after Alice from the Resident evil movies.**

**I have a new story out, which follows LoT's storyline. Check out Lynx Academy, and GIVE ME FEEDBACK!**

**In other news, Halo NG is officially CANCELLED! You now what that means! Far more updates for LoT in the future! Fans, rejoice!**

**I have patented Silver and Ethan's shapeshifting ability! They are now known as 'Modlings'. I will state, however, that the idea of changelings as a whole DID NOT START WITH ME. In general, changelings in and of themselves are only capable of two forms. My Modlings can change into whatever Pokemon form they want.**

**That's all for today, so WEAPON is OUT!**


	11. The East

**Took me a while to write this. Sorry, about that, but I've been busy (Perfecting the Lynx idea and planning with darkhaseo), so I don't think I underworked myself. In any case, enjoy! Oh, and the chick from the last chapter has officially been named Alice.**

**Oh, and I thought I should add a disclaimer, just because I never have before. So, here it is.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon. I own only the OCs presented in this story. I also own the concept of the changeling with 400 forms, codenamed the Modling.**

**Chapter 10: The East**

"Nice story." I smiled; glad to have my friend back. I hadn't known how much I would miss him. We were sitting inside my den, and I had just finished explaining what had happened to me over the past few years. I was still waiting for him to explain why he was here. He kept beating around the bush.

Rose was trying to read my thoughts, and I had a feeling I knew why. Judging by the smile still plastered all over her face, she was trying to find out more about my child-to-be. Let her try, I thought. I had 'conveniently' left the egg out of my story.

"You still haven't explained why you came here." I get moody waiting. He looked up, suddenly grim. "It's Silver. He…found something."

**Alice**

"Hey! You're under arrest!" I winced as Jack yelled out to the man in silver. He looked back towards us, smirking. I grasped my gun tighter, rising out of my crouch to stand beside Jack. Seeing our blue armour, he laughed. "Ah, the police have arrived! Tell me, can you help me find this man?" A hologram popped up in front of him, displaying a familiar face. The target.

I nodded, lowering the rifle. "We can help you find him. Why?" He sheathed his sword, turning away for a moment. "We…have a score to settle." Jack and I nodded. "We'll take you to him. I'll give you five minutes alone with him, but be sure to leave him alive. We need him too."

He agreed, and I replaced my helmet again. Switching the HUD over to a map, I memorized the layout of the area and the path to the target's house. I took the helmet off once again, pointing down the street. He man moved down first, followed by me, then Jack.

Not even halfway down the street we were attacked again. A man in black armour popped out around a corner, weapon raised. There was a silver blur in front of us, and the man is suddenly on the ground. His armour had a gash along the chest plate, from which blood had begun to pour out.

Walking past the dead man, we ran down a series of paths and streets. Despite our speed, the man in silver wasn't even breathing hard. He actually looked irritated that we were moving so slow.

We stopped in front of a small, grey building. I nodded toward Jack, who kicked the door in. I ran inside, gun at the ready. A young, red haired man was sitting on a small chair, looking at me with contempt. "You Bosnians really need to learn your place. This is _my _home. Leave before I am forced to kill you."

Smiling, I brought my gun up, and emptied the magazine. Only the target wasn't there any more. He grabbed my neck, and despite my heavy armour, managed to fling me out the door. A knife appeared in his hand, and as he came out of the house he indifferently stabbed Jack through the neck. I cried out, surprised, as Jack dropped to the ground, wheezing and coughing. A fatal wound.

The target knelt, and pulled the knife out of my team-mate. My eyes narrowed, and I pulled out my sidearm. I took careful aim, and fired. The shot would have hit the base of his knee, were he where had been when I fired. As is, he managed to dodge the shot.

He shot past my guard, grabbing my neck again. He flung me into a nearby concrete wall, and I hit my head, hard, on the solid substance. Stars dance in my eyes. I could barely see, everything was dark. And the red haired man started to walk towards me. The only thing running through my head was 'Where the hell is the guy in silver?'.

**Tal**

"Three days ago, Silver called me. He said he had found some sort of beacon in a place he referred to as 'The East'. It had the _Infinus _logo scratched all over it. Unfortunately, the thing is dead. No way to get proper coordinates from it. But it's a start."

I nodded, thinking the information over. The name stuck in my head. The East, I thought. Where do I know that name from? I shook off the feeling, turning to Rose. "You know what the East is. Tell me." Her eyes widened, but she relented. "The East is a place, far to the east of here, where humans wag a constant war. Three groups, the Imperialists, the Bosnians, and the Haidukens, have been trying to capture it for there own side for nearly a century."

She shook her head slightly. "And that was only the point at which the Imperialists joined the fight. The Bosnians and Haidukens have been fighting over it for longer than any of them care to recall." Her eyes unfocused for a moment, and I could feel a backwash of memories and emotions flooding out of her mind.

When she spoke again, she sounded almost…angry. "The Imperialists, the largest working government on Earth, control a good five percent of our planet's total landmass. The rest is controlled by individual governments. Johto, Kanto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, all the areas around us are Imperialist territory. They have expanded over the years, fighting wars the public never knew about. In time, they will have conquered most of the planet. Then, they will crumble, as all governments do. Then, the cycle will repeat. Humans _never _learn from the past."

Ethan winced at the venom in her words. "Hi! I'm right here!" She looked over at him, smiling. "You can't consider yourself a normal human after you've done what you've…never mind." I picked up an odd emotion, something that I hadn't felt in a while. A maternal bond. Rose had kids.

The realization hit me like a brick. "You mean…you two have…really?" Rose looked amused. "And you haven't?" I could feel myself blushing, and I was _very_ glad my fur hid the colouring. "What if I have? It wasn't interracial though! You two aren't even the same species! That shouldn't even be possible!" Ethan, grinned, pulling down his sleeve. The green markings on his arm flashed, illuminating two strange scars on his upper wrist. "Anything's possible, friend."

Ice had fallen over the conversation. In an effort to break it, I spoke the first thing that came to mind. "Have they…" Rose nodded "Hatched? Yes, a year and a half ago. It was hard to leave them, but a battlefield is no place for children."

**Alice**

"Where am I?" Blindfolded, I could not see. I was tied up, against what felt like a small metal poll. I heard footsteps. Someone grabbed the blindfold, yanked it away. A man with red hair stared at me.

"You're lucky to be alive. That man, the man in silver, would have killed you after he got me. He's a cold blooded killer." He looked genuinely concerned about me for a moment. He stepped away, and I heard a rope snap.

I stood, spinning around to grab the back of his neck. He simply laughed, and ducked around, forcing me to let go. He turned to face me, drawing an ornate, angled knife from his dark clothes. He pointed the knife towards me, shaking his head.

"I've been watching how you and your partner work," The mention of Jack sent a tremor through me. He noticed. "He's alive, alive and well, actually. I'm not evil, and I certainly wouldn't alienate you by killing your friend. I missed the jugular, and the trachea. He will have trouble drinking acidic liquids for a while, but he'll live. Now then, back to business."

"I have enemies in this land. I want you to help me find them. Now, before you go saying anything about me being your enemy, I'm not. I may come from Imperialist territory, but I'm not one of them. The man in silver hacked your command network, planted the mission in your commander's computer."

"That man had a script laid out for you, which you followed without question. He planned on using you to find me, then killing you, your partner, and me off. He is the enemy of _everyone _and cannot be trusted."

He pulled the knife back. "He belonged to a company known as _Infinus_, which experimented on him to create a super soldier. He commands a team of the best fighters in the world. But, I think you may be able to stop him. Help me, and I will help you."

**Tal**

**A month later**

"Welcome to camp Chasi, Mr…?" Ethan brushed him off, walking out of the train that had gotten us here. I already missed Hazle and Raziel, who had hatched just before I left. My son, alone with the war. For how long? I didn't want to think about that. Despite my rationalization, I was worried about the child. What If he inherited my abilities? What if he couldn't control them? I forced myself to think only of the present, for now.

"Silver said we could find him here. And, he mentioned he had picked up some…friends." Sure enough, Silver was standing just outside the train station. Beside him, a man and a woman, who were both wearing light blue clothes. The outfits seemed to hug their wearers more tightly than need be.

Silver saw us, and held a hand in front of the two beside him, before coming over to greet us. He looked grim. "It's worse than I thought before. _Infinus_ is here, but so are the Four Horsemen.

"Then we clear this place of both threats." I turned to Ethan. "Can you handle it this time?" He narrowed his eyes, pulling off his gloves. "This time, I will_ not _lose." The green glow of his hand intensified, and several people passing us look up startled. "This time, the outcome will be very different."

**Alice**

"They don't look like much." I nod towards my partner, grabbing his shoulder at the same time. "Neither did Silver. And he had your number." Jack grunted. "Lucky shot." I punched him playfully in the arm. "Yeah, sure it was."

I scan through the crowd, looking for potential threats. Training becomes a part of you after so long. While I was looking at the train, I noticed a slight shimmer in the air. On top of the train. I motioned for Jack to take a look.

Moments later, the sound of gunfire blasted out of the train's windows. "Shit!" I yelled, diving for cover. I heard a similar response from Jack. I reached for my pistol, still strapped to my thigh, only to hear the distinctive whine of a railgun charging. The crowds, now driven to a frenzy, were surging around madly.

Out of the corner of my eye, I catch a flash of metal. A large flash. I heard the explosive blast of a railgun firing. Turning, trying to throw myself to the side, but to late. The huge slug races at more than a thousand kilometres an hour, aimed straight at me. I brace for the impact.

Impact never comes. I slam, sideways, into the ground. The hit drives the air from my lungs. I look up, and I see the huge metal slug, still white hot, floating in the air. A slight purple glow surrounds it.

I pull the sidearm out of its holster, searching around for the person with the railgun. Instead, I find a man in black robes standing in an alley. He pulls a folding knife from somewhere in his garments, flashing it lightly in my direction.

A man, frenzied from the gunfire, runs blindly into me. Growling, I hit him in the back of the head. Raising my gun, I fire two shots into the air. More screams ensue, and the panic only intensifies.

Turning, I see Jack trading shots with a huge armoured machine. Despite the odds, he seemed to be winning. The man with black hair was fighting, hand to hand, with a woman in a strange, HAZMAT like suit. Silver, who was fighting with the man in silver, had very little in the way of an advantage. And the Umbreon whom Silver had assured me was sentient, was nowhere to be seen.

I turned back to face the robed man, drawing a combat knife at the same moment. The blade gleams wickedly in the dimming sunlight. I draw the knife close to my gun, ready to use either at any moment.

**Tal**

Humans and their battles, I thought darkly. Always, win or lose. That kind of mentality will kill them off. "Rose, what else can you tell me about this place?" The red shape materialized next to me, not startling me the least. It seemed to have become a game to her, testing my seeming omniscience.

"A relative term, the East is a constant battlefield. Eventually, the Imperialists will beat back the others, as they always do. They'll then invade the defenceless Bosnians and Haidukens, claiming their land. Then, they'll move on to the next place. That cycle will continue indefinitely. Imperialists have the best in the means of technology, the strongest soldiers, and the greatest numbers."

"Experiments like Project-HM1 and HM7 created soldiers much like our friends back there, except with much more stable minds. Of that group, the only one who seems to keep his head is Wraith. But I feel something…wrong with him." The words struck me as familiar. "HM1? Human1? They made that kind of thing _legal_?"

Rose nodded sadly. "They managed to refine _Infinus' _original procedures, and modified them to suit individual roles. The first was used as a direct copy of the originals, a way of comparing the progress of the soldiers' minds. The second project was used to make much more powerful soldiers, but the project failed. The soldiers became homicidal, suicidal, or both."

"The third project aimed to create soldiers that worked well in a unit, that were mentally superior. That project was a smashing success, creating the only stable soldiers. Soldiers like Alice." I nodded, smiling faintly. "There's something about her…I can't put my finger on it, but I think we'll be seeing more of her."

**Ethan**

"I don't know how you stopped that railgun round, but I'm starting to like you!" I rolled my eyes at the cackling laughter of the obviously insane girl. I blocked another punch from the metal gauntlets, pushing them to the side. She started to laugh again, and she started the generator on her back.

Her gauntlets flared to life, sparking and glowing. Electricity shot off them, hitting walls and civilians. The panic level skyrocketed, and the people still remained in the square. I could feel my restraint fading quickly, annoyed as I was. The girl smothered a laugh. "Let's leave the kiddie stuff behind, eh? Let's see what you can do!"

Shrugging, I relax my arms, letting them fall to my side. I closed my eyes, trying to concentrate despite the chaos around me. Deciding on a form to take had never been easy before. It was easy now.

**Alice**

"You're not quite my power level yet, friend." I shrugged the comment off, spinning around to dodge another stab. The man was fast. Perhaps I could use that to my advantage.

Spinning, I drop a pin mine onto the dirty road. I leapt backward, out of range of the mine's explosion. I gestured tauntingly at the man in robes, waving my knife around. He smiled, drew into himself, and vanished.

At the same time, I felt an arm close around my neck.

**Tal**

"Enough history, tell me about geography." The streets were blending together, empty, forlorn. No one wandered them, to afraid they were of being seen by the regular patrols of soldiers. This place wasn't a town. It was hell, in every sense of the word. I often found burning houses.

"Remind me why we left them to die?" Rose floated down from her eagle's perch high above me, her eyes accusing. Rolling my own eyes, I responded rather testily. "They won't die. Despite the upgrades the Four Horsemen have gathered, they still have a marked disadvantage. Jack and Alice are the tipping factor."

She sighed in exasperation. "How do you know that? How do you know that I won't lose Ethan? What do you have to risk? Is that risk here? Now? Would you have stayed if Hazle had been there, fighting? Answer me damnit!" Her voice quickly descended into sobs.

For a moment, my blood turned to ice. What if? The moment passed, and I kept walking. "You just don't get it! Ethan and Silver aren't meek little humans! They are more than capable than taking care of themselves! Stop worrying about them!"

For a moment, I felt myself being watched. Looking up, I saw a man, half hidden on the roof of a building, looking down at me. He had blue eyes, and black hair. He smiled at me, waved, and melded into the shadows.

"How do you know Alice can handle them?" The question startled me, I had just known. But now… "I can only hope. It's too late to go back." A blast of air hit me from the side, knocking me off balance. "It is _not _too late! We can go back any time we please! But you are too stubborn! Why did you even get me to come with you?"

Enough mystery, I thought. Time to tell some truths. "Rose, please calm down. I have a hunch, alright? Trust me, they can handle it. I trust Ethan, don't you? I brought you along, because I have an idea. And it takes two."

Just then, a massive roar filled the empty streets.

**Ethan**

"Fool! Do you really believe you can defeat me? I am the embodiment of power, _I am what humans learn to fear! _I will not be beaten!" The words I spoke seamed foreign, not quite coming from my mouth. I had chosen the largest form I had, for dual purposes.

First, my Rayquaza form was immensely powerful, with a tough hide, powerful muscles, and, of course, Hyper Beam and other assorted attacks. And it would also help me drive away the pesky civilians, helping us all.

I floated, well out of range of any enemy attacks, far above the city. I took a moment to survey the tide of battle, and I was surprised at the result. None of us seemed to have an advantage. Alice was in a chokehold, Jack was hiding behind a low stone wall, and Silver, who seemed to enjoy fighting in his human form, was fighting a stalemate. Time to force fate.

**Tal**

"See? He'll be fine. Just focus on what we have to do, here and now. Forget the future, forget the past. You can't change them." She took a deep breath, steadied herself. When she turned back, she looked calm.

"This is not my fight. It is yours. It's you who wanted revenge, not us. We thought to help you. But it seems you are in this for only yourself. I will go back, and I will stay with Ethan, what you do is up to you. But I have no reason to help you."

The words hit me like bricks, forcing me to lower my gaze. "If that's how you feel, then go. But believe it or not, you _do _have a reason to help me. Think about it. They would never pass up the chance to capture you. You have power. And I know what they do to those with power." I shivered at the memories, but didn't stop.

"With me, you can be safe. Ethan is distracted; he couldn't defend you if they showed up. And, since we arrived with such a fanfare, they _will_ show up. They would go after you, and Ethan would try to protect you. But then, he would be killed. Is that what you want?" I had to force myself to keep talking. I may not show it, but I have a heart. And I was torturing her thoughts.

She broke down into shuddering sobs; the mental picture I had forced her to envision had done more than I had thought. "And that's not even the only reason, for at this moment,"

"They have your sister."

* * *

**And down comes the plot hammer! Yeah, awsome isn't it? Raziel is Tal's kid, named after the Jewish 'Keeper of secrets'. If there are any Jewish fans reading this, don't get offended! I value your reading. I just couldn't resist! The name sounds awsome! Really, it does!**

**Lynx academy chapter one is not quite finished yet, and I'm planning on getting it as long as possible. Also, expect LoT chapters to get longer as I attempt to get its average words per chapter to 3,000. Shouldn't take too long.**

**To all my loyal fanbase (or whats left of it), I have just recieved some terrible news. As such, I will be updating less frequently for a while as I work off the grief. I'm sorry my personal tragedy had to rub off on you guys, but thats just how things are going down. :(**

**And, as always, read and review!**

**WEAPON, out.**


	12. Finale Part I

**As you may have guessed from the title, LoT is ending fairly soon. Sad, I know. But soon I will have school to contend with, and I will need all of my free time for homework. So, I won't be writing very often. So, I decided that this story has lived a full, if short, life. It's time to finish this and be done with everything.**

**Disclaimer- I still don't own Pokemon, only the OCs presented in this story.**

**Chapter 11: Finale part I**

"_The subject is showing increased signs of mental strain, mental instability, and physical stress. Sir, this subject is not as strong as the last one! We need to stop this madness!"_

"_That's enough out of you! We will keep doing this until we get it right, regardless of the high mortality rate!"_

"_You monster! We can't replicate Project U-90 with this inferior test subject!"_

"_Regardless of whether or not we can, we _will!_ You aren't here as my advisor, you are here as a scientist! Do your job, not mine."_

"_Sir, the subject's adrenaline levels are rising. Wait, what? Sir! Report from ground team! Someone is in the complex!"_

I smiled as word spread through the base of my arrival. They knew, and they would fear me before I had left. Rose had decided to accompany me after all, after hearing of her sister. The sister she never knew, apparently. That triviality was not my concern. What mattered was not giving _Infinus _anything it can use.

I strode confidently down the hallway, not bothering to attack the majority of the scientists who littered the place. Many were in charge of creating medicines for the people of the East, many more were computer technicians. I only dealt with the bio-geneticists, the guards, and anyone who had any involvement with the experimentation on my kind. I left the rest to Kengou and his people.

I read the door windows as I passed each one, looking for the right containment area. _I-25, I-26, I-27… _None of them the one I wanted. Rose was getting impatient, flying off ahead. Still invisible, but still. Human imaging technology had taken an astounding leap forward when they learned how to utilise infrared waves. And Pokémon generally had higher body temperatures than humans, making them easier to detect.

I growled in annoyance as she flew off again, using my psychic abilities to drag her back. "Your sister will be there when we get there! Calm down, and be careful! I can't protect you if you fly ahead, and they have things here that could take me on, let alone you." She nodded, but the look in her eyes told me she hadn't heard what I was saying. To her, it might as well have been 'Keep running off!'

I rolled my eyes as she once again flew out of my line of sight, but then I heard her shriek. The sound of a huge weapon going off reaches my ears a split second later. "Shit!" I yell, starting to run.

I spun around a corner, my eyes lighting up in preparation to unleash hell. And nothing was wrong, anymore. Rose was floating, unharmed, next to a man with what appeared to be a shotgun wound on his upper torso. Another man, who had a shotgun in his hand, was standing there as well.

The man turned to me, holding the shotgun sideways, away from both of us. "Corporal E. Jones, Bosnian militia. I was sent as reinforcements for Alice and Jack. Could you point me towards them?"

Walking past the human, I motioned to Rose. "Outside, just head towards the gigantic dragon in the sky." I said with mild contempt. I heard a slight chinking noise, and a knife buried itself in the floor right in front of my nose. "Now, now, there's no need to be so rude."

Rolling my eyes, I sent the knife careening into the wall. "Don't try me, human!" He held up his hands in mock surrender, still holding the gun. Rose followed me past him, warily watching the corpse.

**Alice**

"Can't…breath!" This Wraith guy was strong, cutting off my oxygen in a matter of seconds. I was completely incapable of fighting back. I could feel my body weakening, and my vision started to ting black. And then I felt release.

Wraith had pushed me away, letting me breath. Unfortunately, he pushed me right onto my pin mine. "_Fuc-_" My curse was cut off by the explosion, which hurled me shoulder first into a wall.

Thanks to my involvement in the HM3 project, my reinforced skeleton took the hit without breaking. But more than a few nerves were damaged, and my arm hung limply at my side. Luckily, my firing arm was fine, and I grabbed my gun from where it had fallen.

Spinning, I fired the remainder of the gun's clip in Wraith's general direction. Using the most catlike reflexes I had ever seen, he avoided every bullet. Cursing again, I threw the gun away, berating myself for not bringing an extra clip.

**Ethan**

The high voltage electricity felt like a thousand mosquitoes, bouncing harmlessly off my scales, but annoying me tremendously. "You realize that isn't working, right?" I asked the witch angrily.

I gazed down at her, gauging her reaction. I winced as she screamed, and a burst of light flashed through the air. The rest of the four flinched at the light, and I took that as a warning.

When the light faded, a nineteen year old girl, complete with a midriff revealing outfit, had replaced the HAZMAT soldier I had been fighting before. The suit was in tatters around her. She had electric blue eyes and chestnut hair, which fell straight down her back, reaching her hips. And she was holding a railgun.

Just before she fired, I decided I would have to minimize my target profile. In a flash, I was back in my human form, twenty or so feet of the ground. "Oh, shiiiiiii-" My freefall, and curse word, was cut off abruptly as the girl tackled me when I was just inches off the ground.

We tumbled to the ground, ending up with her on top of me, pinning my arms. She was looking at me smugly, and I noticed she had unimaginably pale skin. "I wasn't kidding before. You're pretty awesome."

I rolled my eyes, kicking her off of me. "Sorry, but I'm taken." I said, settling into a combat stance. She shrugged, kneeling to grab her fallen railgun. She stood, spreading her legs to hold the weight of the enormous gun. It was by far larger than she was.

Suddenly, she froze, dropping the railgun. She grasped her head, bending over, screaming. She fell, kicking up a dust cloud. She continued to thrash for quite a while, before curling up into a ball.

I watched her for a moment, suspecting a trap. When she remained on the ground, I decided she needed mental help, and went to get her off the ground. She uncurled as I approached, managing to sit back. "Where am I?"

**Alice**

Wraith was far to fast for me to beat with just a knife. Even if I had armour, he would just stab me a few times and leave. My gun and pin mine were my only advantages I had had, and I had used both of them. Nothing short of a miracle could help me now.

A scream rippled through the square, and I caught a flash of light out of the corner of my eye. Wraith flinched, and I pressed the attack. I ran at him, knife in hand. He simply vanished again, reappearing behind me.

I spun, just in time to block a well aimed kick to the face. I tried to counter, but he twisted away, kicking my ribs in the process. I stumbled back, holding my side. He advanced on me, flashing his knife disrespectfully in front of me.

I was ready to die at that moment, ready to give my life to my cause. But, just then, I heard what may have been the most glorious sound in the world. The explosive _whump _of a shotgun firing.

Wraith disappeared moments before the contents of the shell managed to pass through the space he had occupied. I looked up, and saw my new favourite person. Corporal E. Jones, one of Bosnia's top soldiers, and currently the best shooter in the world.

He nodded at me, throwing me a rifle of some kind. I grabbed it out of the air, saluted, and turned back to my opponent.

**Ethan**

"So, I did all this?" The girl waved her hands around the square. I muffled a laugh. "No, that was me." She looked unconvinced. "How could you have done all this?" She waved again at the scope of the destruction. I just shook my head.

I find it strange how I could talk so calmly with the girl who had nearly killed me five years before. She was a completely different person now. The transformation was unnerving, yet at the same time, I could accept it. Tal had undergone much the same thing, except in reverse.

She seemed like any other teenaged girl now, insecure, childish. Perhaps she wasn't what we had thought she was. Maybe she could be an ally in disguise.

**Tal**

Sneaking around was definitely not my strong suit. Why should it be, when I cannot be beaten? Flawless mentality was my strong suit. Well, actually…

"This looks like the place." I said loudly, startling the Latias beside me. The door I had indicated had no markings of any kind on it, and Rose picked up on that. "And you know this, how?" She asked, somewhat disbelieving.

I rolled my eyes, forcing the door open with a stray thought. I mentally groaned as my psychic abilities went more and more out of control. Eventually, something very, very bad is going to happen.

Inside the room, there was a Latias with a mysterious ink coloured hide, indicating that this was in fact the correct room. She was strapped to an operating table, and it looked as if she had been sedated. And she was not alone.

Next to the table was a man in a strange, black, form fitting combat suit. He had what had to be the biggest gun in existence in his hands, and enormous railgun. It was nearly twice the size of the one used by Volt, and from the looks of it the thing weighed half a ton.

Next to that man was another in what looked like the ruins of a tuxedo. He had discarded the jacket completely, and the shirt and pants had been shredded by very large claws. The man himself was unhurt, however.

As the door opened, the man with the railgun swung his weapon forward, immediately charging the beast up. I had doubts as to whether I should have risked getting fired at, as the rounds fired by the gun would have a devastating effect on my body, and I wasn't sure I could stop the bullet in such an enclosed space.

Luckily, the man with the shredded clothes held up his hand, and the soldier let the charge fade before lowering the gun. Both men eyed us warily. In the corner, I heard a muffled screech from a scientist working on a data terminal of some kind.

The man with the destroyed tuxedo stepped forward, between us and the railgun. "So, Tal, you finally decided to join us." As he spoke, the Latias on the table convulsed, jerking awake. One of her eyes swept around to me. She had black irises.

"I have to say, I wasn't expecting you to come alone." As he said that, I realised Rose had been invisible when I opened the door. I was glad she had stayed in that state. "A bold move, even for you."

I shrugged the comment off, still examining the Latias on the table. She continued to stare at me with a look I could identify as longing. Turning back to the man, I growled. "What the hell have you done?"

He simply snapped his fingers. All the lights in the room and hallway went out. I heard a series of clanking noises, along with a miniature explosion. After that, some ultra powerful, physical attack sent me hurtling back into the hallway, and through a door at the other end.

I spun, losing all track of direction in the darkness. I heard the door explode off its hinges and I instinctively rolled to the side. Deciding I needed light, I willed my oddly dulled out rings to blink on. And I was very surprised with what I saw.

**Ethan**

"Take this!" I covered my ears as the girl, whose name I had learned to be Emma, fired off a random round from the railgun she carried. It sailed right over a surprised Jack's head, just missing the helmet of the massive armoured figure he was fighting.

As if that was a signal, all the fighting in the square stopped. The man in silver nodded to the robotic suit, and the robed man, before leaping atop a large building and disappearing from sight.

The robed man ran out, jumping on top of the man in armour, grasping both sides of the helmet. In a puff of black smoke, they vanished.

"Well, that was easy."

**Tal**

It was the Latias who had slammed into me, and I was astonished to find that I couldn't read her mind, nor could I detect her with my psychic abilities. I could only hope she didn't have any over the top abilities like myself. While I didn't fear a fair fight, I didn't want to chance Rose's life. I had no doubt that she would be found.

My rings, though luminous, failed to completely illuminate the room. The Latias took advantage of that fact and hid in the shadows. Due to her black hide, I was having trouble spotting her. I could only hope that whatever had affected her coat had disabled her down as well.

I was surprised at how silent the floating apparition was; even my hyper sensitive ears couldn't hear her. So, I was forced to turn around blindly and constantly to keep from getting hit in the back. It never occurred to me that she may have left the room.

That turned out to be the truth, as after I got impatient I sent an electric shock through the walls. The lights, now powered, flickered on. The room was empty. And through the destroyed doorway, I could see a receding black form.

As I noticed that, several explosions rocked the underground base.

**Silver**

"They retreated to their underground research facility. It seems that The Four Horsemen have decided to work with _Infinus _after all. Unfortunate, but not entirely disastrous." Beside me, Ethan nodded. "Two birds with one stone, eh?"

I turned away. "Even with Emma's help, those three will cause us no end of trouble. We need them out of the way." A huge column of smoke appeared almost out of nowhere, in the general direction I had seen Tal run off to.

I pointed. "That's where we'll find everyone else. And maybe some answers."

**Tal**

If nothing else, the Latias was fast. Faster than me by far. I quickly lost track of her, even with the lights on. In the end, I decided to return to where I had found her. I knew that the man with the tattered tuxedo had answers for me, along with another chance at vengeance.

He was still where I had left him, except he had decided to change into a more suitable, if less dramatic, lab coat. And then it clicked.

"Jonathan…" I muttered, surprised. It had been a long, long time since I had seen him last, yet he looked almost the same. My eyes clouded, anger bubbling to the surface of my being. "You used me!"

It should have been obvious. Test after test after test, the escapes, taking out the _Infinus _base. All a well orchestrated lie. In a way. He had even used the procedure tested and perfected on me to give himself cell repair.

A massive bid for power. A scam. And he had pulled the wool over my eyes, and the eyes of Kengou's squad. He had wanted the Director out of the way so that he could rise in rank. My actions had been guided without my knowing it.

He nodded slowly, motioning his partner over. The man with the railgun took aim, and a charge built up near the handle. I studied the railgun for a moment, realizing that it had been specifically designed to take me out.

The explosive kinetic power of a railgun round was more than an equivalent amount of high-explosives, meaning that they could manufacture and supply many of them at a low cost. The force the gun exerted made the round hard to stop with telekinesis, while the round itself could easily tear apart the best armour.

If one of the rounds hit me, I would either be killed or stuck in a bed for months. And the nature of the gun itself made it difficult to avoid the round. But I wouldn't fool myself into thinking they would dispose of that horrific weapon when they were finished with me. Those things could take out tanks in only one shot.

"I'll be frank, Tal. Yes, I used you. And yes, I no longer have need of you." The railgun whined menacingly at that point. "You have served your purpose quite well, in fact. Unfortunately for you, _Infinus _has finally promoted me."

"You and Kengou were used. Tools, nothing more. I had you destroy the base in the mainland, along with the director. I would rather have had you destroy it in a less environmentally destructive way, but I suppose that you had to break a few eggs."

"And now, as your final objective, you are to destroy The Four Horsemen." Just as he said that, the wall behind me exploded.

**Ethan**

We had sprinted in the direction of the fire, trying to catch up with Kengou before he could reach the base. Emma had proven to be very fit, more so than me and Silver. Evan the benefits of our lifestyles had failed to raise our physical fitness enough to outrun her.

Whenever we stopped to catch our breaths, she would stand there impatiently, bouncing on the balls of her feet. I was astounded with her endurance, not to mention the fact that she ran faster than I did.

And she was still carrying the railgun. To be able to hold it at all took amazing strength, but being able to run with it faster and longer than a man in his prime bordered on mystical.

The man that Alice and Jack referred to as 'E' had been following us, showing similarly high endurance. Not quite on the same level as Emma, but high non the less. I was starting to feel inferior with all these super soldiers surrounding me.

"This isn't much of a camp…" I mused. Way to big. Alice, beside me, had a similar opinion. "Too big to be considered a camp, to small to be a city. In all technicality, it is a settlement. A war zone."

We round a corner, and I ran smack into a floating red blob. Falling back, I hit the ground hard. Above me, Rose was staring down at me.

**Tal**

Behind me, three very irritated super soldiers. In front of me, two lab technicians with no combat training and a single soldier of unknown skill. The odds were very much for me. A bloodbath would ensue.

I had contacted Kengou as his squad entered the _Infinus_ base, and had been relaying my conversation with Jonathon to him. We had decided on a temporary truce, during which neither of us would attack the other.

Rose had left the complex, and I had told her to make sure that Ethan and the others stayed away. I was going to destroy this complex as well, and I didn't want them caught in the crossfire.

Jonathon was about to find out just how wrong the best laid plans can go.

**Ethan**

"Ethan! Go back! Stay as far away from that base as possible!" Rose was frantic, using everything she had to pull me away. We were close to the base's entrance, and everyone was preparing for a fight.

Emma was shifting uneasily, fidgeting. Her head snapped up, and she turned towards me. "Go! My team is going to destroy the base! If you go in, you won't be coming out again!" Her voice had the same desperation as Rose'.

"Tal is down there! And I will not leave him behind!" Doing that would make my various attempts to save him essentially worthless. Aside from that, he was one of my best friends, and I don't abandon my friends.

Emma shook her head. "I'll go, just get away. The explosion is going to be big." She seemed depressed. "I have unfinished business down there."

After a moments thought, I agreed.

**Tal**

The two had proved to be more capable opponents than I had originally thought. Jonathon had proved immune to psychic attacks; my efforts to force a premature expiration date on him had failed. So, he got a throwing knife between the eyes instead.

The railgun had fired the moment Jonathon was killed. I heard the screech of the massive projectile as it left the elongated barrel of the gun, and I heard a crash as it hit something and released its kinetic energy upon all of us.

I felt an overwhelming pain all over my body, and I blacked out.

* * *

**My old friend the cliffhanger has returned for the last time. Can you believe that? This is the last cliffhanger I will ever be putting in this story. But don't worry, many more will be present in the sequal, Lynx Academy. Many of my own and some of your favorite OCs will be in that story as well, along with some new faces.**

**The next chapter I post will be the final chapter LoT will see. However, in my infinite wisdom, I have decided to add an Epilogue after that. One big ass monologue, coming up!**

**Oh, and if the second part of the finale is too short, i.e less than 3,000 words, I will simply mold it into this one. The Epilogue will be seperate no matter what, however.**

**Once again, this is WEAPON, signing off.**


	13. Finale Part II

**Well, this is the end of the main story. It's been a good run, but it's time for me to move on to my next project. Enjoy this chapter, because theres only one other left. The Epilogue. **

**Oh, and this IS the longest chapter I have ever written, at a total of 5,057 words. That's longer than my previous longest chapter which was 5,033 WITH bold text. The number above is without bold text. **

**Well, enjoy.**

**To those that read this before, I have edited Tal's age to be closer to a more realistic legal age for reproduction, so he is now set at twenty one. For those of you just reading this, just read the story. This doesn't concern you.**

**Chapter 12: Finale Part II**

Everything was shadowing as I opened my eyes, surrounded by melted and warped metal. I blinked dust out of my eyes, watching for any movement as I rose to my feet. The room I was in was completely destroyed, with only the integrity of the rooms around me keeping the ceiling from crashing down.

A heavy haze of dust floated in the room, making it difficult to see. I had a vague idea that the dust was minute pieces of metal, scattered by the blast from the railgun. The same explosion had managed to mangle the metal of the walls quite a ways away, melting even more from pure kinetic heat.

The area around me had a very quite atmosphere, I couldn't hear a thing. Even the base's massive generators were silent. The base must have been evacuated, which would make destroying it much easier to pull off. I may hate most of these people, but I do have a heart.

Several lights had been destroyed by the explosion, while many others had suffered from the electrical discharge. Some of the lights remained active, while others flickered on and off. The effect was akin to a horror movie, albeit with much less screaming and dying.

I rose to my feet, experimentally sending a bolt of electricity through the air. It arced along the metal dust, sinking into the walls a moment later. Another moment later, it came arcing back out of the wall, along the metal dust, before zapping me.

I recoiled, shocked ever so slightly. I looked at the floating metal, reassessing it as 'hyper-conductive' mentally. If I had to give _Infinus _props for one thing, it would be their material development teams. Miracle workers.

I walked into the hallway, passing even more charred and crumpled metal as I walked down it. Even far from the railgun round's point of impact were several char marks and dents in the metal.

But those marks had a different texture to them, grainy rather than melted. They reminded me of rocket and missile explosion remains. So this wasn't over, yet. And I had a bad feeling.

Turning away from the dark burns, I gazed down the long, empty hallway. Most of it was deformed, misshaped, or melted. Reminded me a little of my own life. The analogy depressed me.

Shaking my head, I altered my focus. I tried to find any life forms left in the base, but could find none. The entire base was completely devoid of life. How could three people completely wipe out a large force in a matter of hours?

Well, that's assuming I was only out for a few hours.

While my internal clock may function better than a normal one while I'm awake, it shuts off while I sleep. Being unconscious has the same effect. I had no idea how long I had been unconscious, but I did have an idea of how long I had been wandering.

"Three hours, five minutes, and twenty two seconds…" I muttered, still wandering aimlessly. I had the vague impression that I had been going down, several dozen floors at least. How big was this base?

All around me, no matter where I went, were burn and scorch marks, along with cuts along the walls and bullet hole. Not to mention the mutilated bodies. And the blood. It was everywhere, including the walls and somehow the ceiling.

I looked up, examining the red roof. "That doesn't seem physically possible," I mused, bored out of my mind. I had absolutely nothing to do, except wander and think. And, unfortunately, I had a very deformed mental state, what with the torture and all.

Taking a trip through my mind is like walking through a forest devoid of trees. Not possible, right? Or like taking a trip through an ocean with no water. It just doesn't work. All three of these things are convolutions of nature, things that aren't meant to exist.

I, naturally, thought of my child, Raziel. A war zone was no place to raise a child, especially alone. Throwing some unstable powers into the mix pretty much makes it a massive gamble. My not being there would lead to many, man bad moments.

Hazle… I thought to myself. What have we gotten ourselves into? I had reservations about…reproduction for a long time. I myself could barely control my power at the best of times. And I was built with astounding mental control. But a child…

I turned my mind away from the thought, focusing on the task at hand. I would have to figure out a way to make the base's reactor go critical _without _blowing myself up in the process. I didn't want to become a martyr, but at the same time I had to dispose of any and all technological data stored in the base.

I didn't have an electromagnetic pulse weapon on me, so knocking out the computers would take days. Blowing the base up would likely take me out at the same time. I didn't have an explosive deice, so remote detonation was impossible.

I sighed in frustration, unintentionally sending a fire ball into the wall. The entire thing melted almost instantly, revealing a steel-esc metal frame. I narrowed my eyes at the metal, and it began to glow a slight purple.

Manipulating it with telekinesis, I ripped a small shard out. I turned it around and around, examining its odd hexagonal structure. A thousand tiny honeycombs, smaller than a grain of sand. The metal itself must have been able to take heat with little to no warping, as the shard was undamaged.

I noticed a small electrical charge in the metal, and grinned slightly to myself. This would work just fine.

I went about gathering as much of the support metal as possible without destroying the supports completely. I maintained their honeycomb structure as a precaution, not wanting to disable their ability to hold and transmit electricity.

The plan I had outlined was close to foolproof, but relied solely on the metal shards. If they ceased to function properly, I would be forced to level the base in its entirety. If that happened, I had a very low chance of survival.

While I may have a reinforced skeletal structure, along with a healing factor, I would not be able to survive something ultra-traumatic. Like the simultaneous rupturing of every organ in my body. Or permanent brain damage.

If you go in depth to the source of my healing ability, you would find that it is controlled through a generally unused part of the brain. It exists within most beings, simply inactive. It takes experimentation on that portion of the brain to enable it.

And as most things are, that portion of the brain is _very _susceptible to damage. Brain damage most often constitutes this portion. If it is damaged too much, it will shut off any and all healing effects until regenerated through medical treatment.

Now that I think about it, I've never looked in depth about into my healing ability. I suppose I have to explain the rest of it now. I'll try not to use terms that may harm your head, but no promises.

The healing factor does not simply regenerate destroyed tissue, it has a deeper focus. In essence, it stops any and all cell division within a subject's body. It also keeps the cells from dying of anything other than a deliberate attack on the body.

Knives, bullets, explosions, etc. Poisons are also held in that category, along with particularly nasty diseases. These things can cause the death of cells, and any of these dead cells are 'recycled' with newer material to create replacements.

The replacements, unlike natural cells, never actually degrade. Age doesn't affect them. Therefore, so long as I keep my ability active, I cannot die from old age. Immortal, in a sense. Ironically, I'm not concerned about how long I'll live, but how old I already am.

According to EVE records, I'm somewhere around twenty-one. Which I doubt, considering how long I was held captive by _Infinus_. I was somewhere closer to fifty. Possibly even older. Who knows what I got up to after that? Or before then?

A small _ding _brought me out of my thoughts, and I flicked my ears in annoyance. I would have dismissed the sound, but a sudden humming started to fly through the hallway. Someone had started the generators. Someone was on the reactor level.

_Quattuor_ _equitatus._

Dropping the huge ball of metal, I rushed down another set of stairs. If I was right, I would be able to find an elevator to the reactor level from that floor. It was so far down that stairs would not make it.

I was right, and a small elevator, meant for one person at a time, was waiting on the lowest maintenance level. I ignored the controls, which were meant for human use, and forced the door open with telekinesis.

The elevator, unfortunately, was broken. Sabotage. I shrugged, blasting the bottom out. Looking down, I could see that the elevator shaft went on for a very long time, to deep to see the bottom. "Well," I muttered. "I always did enjoy jumping."

Leaving no time to chicken out, I leapt into the narrow chasm.

The elevator shaft went on for a long, long time. So long, in fact, that I accelerated to speeds that would have liquefied a human. Poor brittle humans. The wind threatened to cut my skin, but a psychic wave kept most of the damage from becoming serious.

I managed to 'map' the elevator shaft out in my mind, displaying it in lines within my mind's eye. The effect was a long series of criss-crossing orange lines, going very far in front of me before merging into a small square that was the bottom.

The bottom was approaching a little to fast. Pulling out of my almost comical dive, I levelled out before blasting the entire elevator shaft full of flames and condensed air. The blast slowed me considerably, allowing for a safe landing and no broken bones.

The air down at the bottom was frosty, buried so deep in the Earth that little heat reached it. I felt sorry for any technicians who had worked here; they would have had to wear winter equipment to survive the arctic temperatures.

The hallway stretched of, with a slight downward slope. It faded of in the distance, which was easy if you account for the mist that floated through the entire thing, top to bottom. "This place needs some heaters,"

I could barely hear anything over the now overpowering sound of the generator, let alone footfalls. Knowing someone was down here wasn't enough. Not only did I have to find them, but I had to deal with them.

A psychic scan brought up nothing, not even a rat. Which should have been obvious, at that point. No rat could survive the arctic! But in all honesty, the fact that no life forms showed up was unsettling, since I was used to having an orange painting in my head every time I did this kind of thing.

I began to walk aimlessly towards the centre of the level, which contained a large room that housed the reactor core. The reactor itself was huge, extending more than a hundred meters below the top maintenance node.

The reactor had been developed with a failsafe, which would cause the entire thing to explode should the node be damaged beyond repair. This dissuaded any unstable maintenance workers from venting on the fragile core. The suicidal ones, however…

Absentmindedly, I almost walked right past the people I was looking for. A rough laugh separated me from my absentmindedness, snapping me back to reality. I spun lightly, my fur standing on end.

The one with the cloak was standing…no, leaning against a wall, right beside me. How had I failed to see him? Well, from what Phoenix had told me, he had a stealth device that could turn him invisible.

Not the only 'enhancements' he had, judging by the fact that he came up blank on my psychic searches. Cerebral implants to dampen the overflow of thoughts. Another type of invisibility for psychics. Wonderful.

He gestured at a doorway beside him, through which I could see the maintenance node for the generator. Beside that, I could also see the hulking suit of Tank, although it was unoccupied. I could guess that the Four wanted a final showdown. Why not?

I stepped through, aware of the man behind me. He seemed far too calm, almost as if he was waiting for a reason to pop. Constrained anger, constrained dementia. Yet somehow, his face revealed none of that.

In one corner of the room, a bald man with a serious amount of muscle was tinkering with a small gun-like object. In another, Kengou was using a small knife to randomly slice the wall to pieces. Psycho all the way, I suppose.

Both turned to look at me as I entered, and the bald man dropped the object he was working on, and sprinted over to his armoured suit. He disappeared behind it, and after a moment the entire thing started to move, at the same time compressing itself.

The effect would have terrified any normal person, as the ten-and-a-half foot tall suit began to turn itself around to face me. The suit itself was covered in exposed wires, not to mention the dozen or so guns. I would list them, but that would take hours.

Kengou pushed away from the wall, drawing his sword. The shining silvery metal gleamed in the foggy room, which was starting to warm with the generator active. He shook his head slowly, almost sadly.

"So, friend," he said, his voice low. "This is where it ends." The others nodded, looking almost solemn. Wait, how could I see the bald one? Odd… Kengou flashed the sword menacingly. "One must die…"

"We have a proposition for you. A fight to the death, one on one. If you beat us, we will set off the generator. But if even one of us beats you, you have to set it off. The winner escapes. Agreed?" I nodded, narrowing my eyes.

First off, Tank. The room was large enough for the two of us to face off without risking the generator, but at the same time we had to be careful. No point in fighting to the death just to kill everyone with a stray rocket.

The machine moved like a gigantic man, with exaggerated swinging arms that had almost no purpose other than as a robot stereotype. I never really got that one. But the guns meant business, so there's no more time for comic relief. Sorry!

He swung a massive arm around, unleashing a hail of bullets from two machine guns mounted on the arm. I stopped the bullets one by one with simple thoughts, and dropped them over to the side. Before long, I had a large pile of them, and already I had a plan to use them.

After almost three minutes of continual firing, the machine guns finally ran out of ammo. Which would have been good, had it not forced the man to switch to firing a rocket launcher at me.

I dodged the explosive projectile, diving to the side. Unfortunately, I threw myself a little too hard, resulting in the impact driving the air from my lungs. I gasped for breath, flipping over to land back on my feet.

But it seemed that the missile ha other ideas, as it arced back around to follow me. I dodged to the side again, this time more carefully, before grabbing a handful of bullets via telekinesis, and scattering them in the rocket's path.

I got lucky, and the rocket ploughed through the floating bullets before exploding, scattering or melting the rest. The untouched pile remained, and I was sure I could count over twelve hundred bullets. More than enough to pierce the mech's armour and hit the man inside.

Picking the bullets up, I made a veritable wall between us. Tank seemed to notice that I was cooking something up, what with the floating bullets and all. He tried to hit me with another rocket, but I simply countered that with another bullet.

I let the anticipation bake for a moment, before launching twelve hundred bullets at once into the armoured suit that was Tank. I heard a series of dull thunks, and the suit sank to the ground, sparks flying off it in every direction.

One down, two to go.

Next up, Wraith. He really didn't look like much, with very little in the way of muscle, and only a knife for a weapon. But invisibility… I would simply find a way to cope with that particular advantage.

Wraith seemed to read _my _thoughts at that point, as he smirked. For a moment, just less than a split second, he disappeared. When he reappeared, he was at the opposite side of the room.

"We all got upgrades, friend." He said. "Mine happened to be the world's first man portable relocation device." He laughed. "AKA, the teleporter." He vanished again, reappearing on the generator node.

I shrugged, it made little difference. I would win, one way or another. One obstacle would not make a difference.

He jumped forward, his knife flashing in the dim light. Due to my compact size, attacking me with a knife is very, very stupid, and your chances of hitting me, pretty much zilch. This guy wasn't even fast enough.

I dodged easily to the side, giving him a smug grin. He took that minor defeat in stride, and again tried to cut me. This time, I simply threw him into a wall with telekinesis. Following that, I blasted him with electricity.

He slumped to the ground, unconscious.

And finally, the final showdown. Me and Kengou, one on one. This time, only one would leave the ring. Which reminds me, in a fight to the death, how exactly would the loser be able to destroy the base when they would be dead? Some people need to think some of their thoughts through.

We circled each other for a moment, and I conjured up a hovering orb of electricity. I seem to be developing an ironic affinity to that stuff. The ball began to orbit around me, sparks flying off its surface. Like a guard dog.

Kengou seemed to stiffen at the sight of the electricity, before relaxing slightly. He had a sad gleam in his eyes while he watched it circle me. "Oh, did I hit a nerve?" I taunted. Uncharacteristic of me, but still. They owed me that.

He growled, launching himself towards me sword first. He caught the orb with the gleaming blade, causing the encapsulated electricity to burst outward. Most of it arced away harmlessly, while other streams arced straight along Kengou's sword. I could see it shocking him. I deflected any bolts that came anywhere near me.

Kengou's momentum was completely stopped by the electrical explosion, And he dropped to the ground. He spun, attempting to hit me with a backhand swing. I dodged backwards, and his sword left a large cut in the floor. What was that thing made of?

I tried to use telekinesis to hurl him against the wall, but he somehow managed to position himself to kick off it. He managed to get above me, and he almost flipped over into a vertical slash. This time, I was forced to jump to the side.

I growled, yet at the same time I was laughing inside. A sword? Really? How do you expect to beat me with a sword? It doesn't seem physically possible, what with my amazing close _and _long range attacks. Not to mention telekinesis.

This contest was starting to bore me. I suppose that an assured victory would do that. Either that, or the fact that he had terrible form. Hacking and slashing like a barbarian. Uncivilized people with civilized weapons. Not a good combination.

Using telekinesis, I grabbed him by the throat. I lifted him almost a foot off the ground, and he started to grab at the non-existent hands compressing his trachea. After a moment, his sword was discarded.

Behind me, I heard an unfamiliar female voice. "Alright, that's enough! Both of you!" I spun, dropping Kengou, when I heard the whine of a railgun charging. A young woman was standing there, with a railgun pointed at the generator node.

I growled, trying to focus my psychic power on her. She shook her head. "The round is primed. If I remove my finger from the trigger, we all die." Even with that warning, I tried hard to move the gun from where it was pointing, to no avail.

"Volt! What are you doing?" I heard Kengou call out from behind me. 'Volt' shook her head sadly. "Look around, Ken." I did just that, and noticed the damage to the walls of the room. It was covered in bullet holes, sword slashes, and electrical burns.

"Look at all this! This is all we amount to, weapons!" As she spoke, tears started to form in her eyes. "That is all we are good for, killing and murder. People like us are too dangerous to live." She pressed the railgun harder against the node. "So I'm going to end it all now."

"This world doesn't need people like us! One day, all wars will end. We will be cast out because we don't have any other skills. We don't have a place in that society! We are abominations of nature, above and beyond what we used to be. What we are supposed to be."

"This world needs heroes. Are we those heroes? Look around you, and you will find the answer. No. We are…monsters, incapable of living in piece. And there is _no _honour in this constant fight."

"No one who has ever killed should be considered a hero. Those who resolve conflicts without fighting are true heroes. Those who end fighting before it is lethal are heroes. People who do the little things that are unseen by the big picture, those are true heroes."

"People who don't ask for a reward, or fame. Those that fade into the background, not expecting to be rewarded or noticed for the things they do to make everyone else more comfortable, safer. Even for just a few short moments."

"One day, the world will realise that. But until then, this is the way it must end." Tears were now streaming down her face, completely unchecked. "I'm sorry, but this is the way it must end. This, is my final mission."

Something slammed into me just as the railgun fired, and around me everything went white.

**Ethan**

We were watching from a safe distance, on a building near the train station. The _Infinus _building was tall, despite being a front. Flashy, flashy. The last thing we expected was an explosion.

The entire building lit up from within, before bursting outward. Beside me, I heard Silver mutter something about a 'none nuclear generator', but I passed it off to watch the fireworks. Pieces of the building had flowered out, crashing into nearby buildings.

Even worse was the tremor that followed. A huge earthquake, shaking the ground hard. The area around the building seemed to collapse, and a secondary explosion blasted the weakened rock up and out, creating a huge hole in the ground.

The explosion may not have been nuclear, but it was still huge. And Tal had been in the middle of it.

**Tal**

I was thrown to the dusty, rocky ground, remarkably alive. "How in hell?" I wondered, although in the background I could see a massive explosion. Teleportation?

I looked around, finding a small, flaming crater surrounding me. Near the edge, the Black Latias was on the ground, breathing labouredly. "So you saved me," I muttered, before noticing that she was hurt.

I rushed over, almost out of reflex. It wasn't pretty. She was having a lot of trouble breathing, and a look through my psychic filter didn't help either. Her body seemed to be rejecting the teleportation, causing a severe breakdown in her cell structure.

She might live, but it was a long shot. And I would have to heal her. She started to gasp for breath, and I knew I would have to act _very _fast. And I could not make a wrong move.

I settled down beside her, with one paw touching her flank, and closed my eyes. After my first attempt at healing, I had learned how to draw the damage into my own body, bit by bit, so that my healing factor could neutralize it.

I felt several dull aches all over my body as I started, before the pain began to intensify. After a moment, it felt as if I had been lit on fire, while at the same time, my lungs began to shrivel, if only momentarily.

After what seemed like a few minutes, I opened my eyes. The sun was in an entirely different position than it was before, leading me to conclude that yet again I had been out for a few hours. Usually it's experienced the other way around.

The Latias was standing over me cautiously, as if she was afraid I would bite her head off. Tempting, but no. When I opened my eyes, she smiled warmly. I noticed that I was still on the ground, but I hadn't moved much through the entire healing process.

I stood, shaking my tired and stiff muscles to loosen them up. No use getting a sprain over something so minor. Wait, can I even get sprains? I could probably pull a muscle, but could I get a sprain?

The Latias cleared her throat. "While I'm grateful for your help, I must go now. My sister approaches. She brings your entire group with her. Perhaps we will meet in the future, but until then…" She turned to leave.

"Wait!" I was barely aware that I had spoken until she turned around. "Why did you save me?" She shrugged. "You know my sister, and you have a good heart. Don't waste that." She turned away again, and started to move away.

But she appeared to realize something, and turned back around. "Oh, and hurry home. Bad news may await if you take to long." I cocked my head, confused. "What do you mean…and how do you know?"

She sighed, slowly, almost painfully slowly. "I have premonitions from time to time. And one of your loved ones is in danger. And this time, it is from a foe you can't fight. Radiation will be their undoing. I'm sorry I can't do anything more for you."

The comment astounded me. Radiation? How could that affect me? How was it even factored into my life… Aw, shit!

**Ethan**

"Don't worry Ethan, I told you before, I sensed a teleport in that base. He may have gotten out! We just have to keep searching!" Rose was trying, but she wasn't helping my growing depressed mood. What if he hadn't?

Life was just a game of 'what if?' anyways. Luck never factored in, just chance. No karma either. I hate karma, especially considering the fact that it never works for the good guys. Really, when does karma ever work for good guys?

Take _Infinus _for example. They experiment on both their own kind and Pokémon, and they get _paid! _We do what's right, and nearly get killed every time! Karma is just an illusion, create by idealists. Or maybe both luck and karma exist, and I'm just so unlucky that karma works against me. Or maybe it only affects reincarnated forms of people. 'What if?'

My hopes had dimmed, what was once a fire was now a cinder. Considering we had been searching for hours, and soon we were going to be swamped by soldiers. After that, we would have no chance of finding Tal.

I would rather not abandon him out here, what with the unforgiving landscape, unknown amount of food, and of course lack of places to make a home. I would find him, even if it took me forever. Even if I only found a corpse.

"He should be right over here… Yes! There he is!" Rose shouted out to us, somewhat ecstatic. I never knew she liked Tal so much. I sprinted over a low hill, stopping at the top. Tal was at the bottom, in a small crater. He seemed lost in thought.

"Tal! Are you okay?" He turned around, a sad expression on his face. I had a bad feeling about that, but what could I do at the time. He moved slowly, almost dragging himself along the ground. "Bad news?"

He nodded sadly. "Yeah, something like that. Let's go home, alright?"

**Tal**

The train wouldn't be fast enough. The trip here had taken almost five days, during which time we had been cramped into the tiny train car. I did have to give the train company props for their toast, though. That stuff was amazing.

I had my doubts, but it was still the fastest way back. Ninety kilometres an hour was faster than Rose's limited teleportation ability, which maxed out at around five kilometre jumps, plus rest. My best bet wasn't good enough. My only hope was luck.

The town was silent around us as we headed to the train station. The explosion seemed to have scared everyone into their houses. This whole place was deserted, empty. The houses seemed so old, forgotten remnants of some sad time in history.

Luckily for us, the train had just arrived when we got to the train station, giving us ample time to board. Jack and Alice went their separate ways, leaving us on the platform. I had a feeling that I would see them again someday. Until then…

"Hazle… Wait for me…"

* * *

**Heh. I lied. I still had one cliffhanger left up my sleeve. But, yeah, the only chapter left IS the Epilogue, which will function similar to a normal chapter. Just because I can.**

**To any fan who has stuck with me from beggining to end, heres to you buddy!**

**People, the lack of reviews has forced my hand. I will not be posting the Epilogue until I have atleast 10 reviews and 1000 views on this story. Good day. UPDATE: I should have tried that before, because my views just skyrocketed! 31 views before 1:00 today! That's amazing!**

**Until next time, this is WEAPON, signing off.**


	14. Epilogue

**Well, this is it. The last LoT chapter ever to be written. Enjoy it, for it is the last of its kind. Oh, and I lied. It doesn't include a monologue of any kind. Sorry, but hey, it's my story. Unless you want to buy it...**

**I owe thanks to darkhaseo90 and Galalithial for 'beta-testing' this chapter, although they don't usually beta-read. I think. Actually... Well, here's to them!**

**Anyway, enjoy it.**

**Epilogue**

"Tal, you need to sleep. Staying awake five days straight isn't going to help anyone." Across from me, Rose was trying unsuccessfully to get a restless Tal to sleep. We had been on the train for almost four days, and due to some malfunction in the track we weren't due to hit Kanto until late two days from now.

Tal hadn't said a single word since we had boarded the train, nor had he eaten. I have to admit, whatever had happened must have been horrible. I was almost afraid to ask what was on his mind. But we had to know what was wrong.

Silver had told me that he could 'sense' the problem, a conversation about his sensitivity to 'overflowed emotions' had followed that particular comment. Unfortunately, he refused to tell me about the problem.

Rose had tried to get a fix on Tal's thoughts, but according to her he had a brick wall in front of his mind. No cracks, no chinks in the armour. He had been trained against mind readers, after all.

Despite his lack of food and sleep, he looked no worse for wear. He was just… anxious. Worried about the future, perhaps? If something could worry him, I didn't want to know about it. Tal is the most straightforward, present seeing person I know.

Whatever was coming, it couldn't be good for any of us.

**Tal**

I was right. The train would take too long. Why did this have to happen now? Why couldn't it have waited, or come sooner. Why did this have to happen at all? Why me? And what if I was too late?

I knew I wouldn't be able to live with myself after a failure that momentous. This entire escapade had been my fault, and any fatalities would be my fault as well.

Even with the landscape whipping past at nearly ninety kilometres an hour, I was able to pick out herds of Tauros, and some grazing Miltank. How many of them knew about the rest of the world? Even the large groups of human adventurers had no idea what was happening on the other end of the world. Hell, it wasn't even that far away.

To lead such a sheltered existence… How could you do that? Going so long without knowing what was really happening in the world? That's the only reason that the Imperialists had any power, through ignorance. The public can't rebel against something they know nothing about.

If all else failed me, I was going to find a way to reveal the war to the public eye. They had to know about the things their country was doing.

**

* * *

**

The moment the doors opened, I was out. We had arrived in Kanto behind schedule, due to 'unforeseen circumstances'. But due to a stroke of luck, we had been diverted to a northern way station rather than any of the cities. Much closer to the mainland than any other station.

I was out and running, past a surprisingly large crowd of people. Just how many actually went to and from the East? Certainly not this many people. And from the looks of it few were military.

I dodged past the crowds, well ahead of Ethan and Silver. I slammed into the nearest exit I could find, knocking it open. It was dark out, evidence of just how late the train was. I shot out into the forest, Rose just behind me. Silver and Ethan must have been interrupted by some station minder. They'd catch up.

A light rain had started, quickly soaking me and Rose. Not to mention the underbrush, making it hard to run. I kept going, not really caring if I tripped. I would deserve that later. And I was already too late. So what was the point?

**Ethan**

"How many people live out there?" I asked Silver, who was likewise flustered at the amount of people. They formed a living wall between us and the exit, unintentionally blocking the escape route of almost everyone who wanted to leave. Idiots.

A man in a blue station authority shirt walked up. "How may I assist you today, weary traveller?" I pointed to the mass of people blocking the exit. "Move them before I have to." Silver muffled a laugh. "That wouldn't be pretty," he said, still laughing.

The man's features contorted in anger. "You sir, have just threatened the safety of those under my protection! I challenge you to a-" Before he could finish, I had punched him in the chest. "Pokémon battle?" I finished, Silver still laughing.

The man crumpled, holding his chest. I pulled my only remaining Pokéball from my belt, waving it around. "If we did that, Ronin here would destroy this entire station." I tossed the ball up, catching it as it fell.

The crowd was now watching us, hoping for some entertainment while they waited. I was glad I had gotten those gloves; else there would be a lot of screaming right about now. Hands aren't supposed to glow green, when you think about it.

I offered the man a hand in getting up, but when he grabbed it he tried to pull me down next to him. Grabbing his wrist, ignoring his feeble attempts at revenge, I hauled him up. He tried to punch my face, but since he was overly disoriented and in pain the shot was easy to dodge.

He growled, still trying to hit me. Silver, still laughing, grabbed the man's arm. "That's enough. You do _not _want to see what happens when he gets angry." He started laughing even harder for some reason. That's was unlike him. Interesting.

The man ripped his arm out of Silver's grasp, resulting in the red haired man's laughter increasing. I shook my head, more than a little startled. "Damn, Silver, are you high?" I asked, his laughter increasing even more.

The man launched himself at me, obviously a novice at hand to hand combat. Then again, with Pokémon around you don't have to learn melee combat. I sidestepped, hitting him in the back with a well timed push. He was sent sprawling onto the floor.

The crowd, zombies they were, just stood there watching us. Silver continued to laugh crazily, almost obsessively. I was going to have to ask him about that later. The man was still trying to get to his feet, but I must have pushed him harder than I thought, because he was gasping for breath and his face was bleeding.

He managed to get to his feet, face still contorted in anger. I rolled my eyes at his persistence, grabbing the bottom of my glove. I knew one way to end this. Even if it lead to screams. I could deal with that. Silver, seeing what I was going to do, doubled over laughing. He must have iron lungs or something.

Undoing the tie that held the glove in place, I looked up at the man who was still focused on attacking. "Last chance…" I said mysteriously. He just lunged again. Sighing, I punched him in the gut. Before he could try anything more, I ripped the glove off. And the screaming started.

While the sleeve of my shirt did little to hide the glowing green mark on my arm, I had learned how to dim that portion to make it unnecessary. The mark on my hand was always glowing, however, no matter how hard I tried to dim it. That's why I got the glove.

With my glowing hand revealed, the general atmosphere of the room shifted. Most people were now screaming, running back and forth for no reason, or peering interestedly at me. Others just smiled, almost knowingly. Silver, still laughing, Managed to sputter out something about Lyra.

The man, who was now scared out of his mind, looked at me fearfully. "Wh-what t-the?" he stuttered. I waved my hand around. "You see this mark?" I said aggressively. "This mark gives me permission to do whatever the hell I want to you. So let it go."

Unfortunately, he took that as a challenge. "Some tribal marking does _not _give you more authority here, so I am going to have to ask you to leave." Famous last words. Even Silver snapped out of his laughing fit when he saw me get angry. "Oh shiiii-"

**Tal**

Running had never tired me out before. Why was it doing that now? Even before I had regained most of my abilities, I had been a great runner. I had certainly run more than five kilometres before. What was going on?

Rose, still following me, picked up on that thought. "I told you to sleep. You're tired and hungry; you obviously need rest to run. Even you." I shook the comment off. No use being distracted now. Hazle needed me.

But she had needed me long before now. And my incompetence had been her undoing. I was too late to save her now, and would have been no matter how fast the train had gotten me home. I had failed the moment I started this whole thing.

My legs kicked up dirt as I ran, through the wet underbrush and moist ground. My fur was slick with water, sticking irritatingly to my skin. My rings were alight, pulsing like a flame. My vision was starting to dim from exhaustion.

Narrowing my eyes in determination, I pushed on. I was too close to give up now. Besides, I didn't deserve a rest. Not after my monumental failure. I would run until my legs stopped working. I would run myself into the ground.

"How did I miss it, Rose? It was so obvious, how could not have noticed? Was I that hung up on revenge?" Rose, still not understanding what I was talking about, just nodded. "Revenge is what got you in this mess, whatever it is."

Hearing that confirmation brought tears to my eyes. How had I been so blind, so transparent? I had everything I could ever have needed, and I threw it all away in some bid for closure. How could I have been so stupid?

No, I would not stop. I deserved the pain and internal damage. Might as well make the body match the mind.

**

* * *

**

I ran for five hours straight, driven by pure determination. I was unwilling to give up, not when I had already failed her. No matter how late I was, I would get there as soon as possible.

As I ran, I began to piece this whole puzzle together, dredging memories better left untouched back into existence. The first _Infinus _base, the Four, the explosion. It all added up so obviously. How had I missed it?

Psychic types have a natural weakness to radiation, resulting in the symptoms of radiation sickness advancing faster than normal. Cell mutation, deficiencies within the body itself… Eventually, it would lead to death. And I had dosed Hazle with a massive amount of radiation.

I should have realized what I had done much sooner, should have tried to cure her. But blinded by a lust for revenge, I had completely overlooked her safety. And I had sworn to protect her. Well, I had done a great job of that!

Another thought crossed my mind. _How the hell am I going to explain this to Raziel? _There was no way he was going to accept me as his only parent after I had been gone for nearly two weeks. How would he take this?

How about Null? I had inadvertently killed off her best friend. What of Hazle's other friends? How was I going to explain this to any of them? They would attempt to tear me apart when I told them my part in this. Maybe I would let them. This was my fault anyway.

I was notoriously bad at explaining things to people. I had had much the same problem five years ago with Spine. He had wanted an explanation for Ritch's disappearance, and he logically turned to me. We had been roommates at the time, before the war. Before I was legally too old to stay at the academy.

The conversation that followed had been far more than awkward, and afterwards he had attempted to strangle me. I had 'persuaded' him to go away with a minor display of my psychic power, slamming him into a wall. We hadn't talked since.

I jumped a fallen log, but misjudged my landing and sprawled into the mud. It instantly fixed itself onto my fur, hardening as I got to my feet. I growled in frustration at the setback, setting off again at a dead sprint.

If I didn't make it soon, fatigue would win. I couldn't let that happen. Pushing myself even harder, I ran faster. My vision was now red tinted. My breath came in quick, shallow gasps. My leg muscles were straining to keep going, pulling and burning with every step.

I would make it, no matter the cost. No matter what. I would not stop.

**

* * *

**

As I crested another rise, a few hours later, I could see the academy in the distance. Closer to me was my home, my only oasis in the desert that was my life. Yes, I use metaphors. The cave was dark, empty, forgotten.

I ran down the hill, tripped, and fell flat on my face at the bottom. My stop had stiffened my leg muscles, making movement hard. I got to my feet, now struggling to get the last few feet. I would not give up now! Not after hours of running. I don't waste my time like that.

I managed to stumble to the lip of the cave, which was covered in cobwebs. A group of Spinarak scuttled out as I approached. I had expected no less, but the emptiness brought more tears to my eyes.

Walking in, I looked around at the place I had lived in for so long, which now seemed so empty. And I noticed a small piece of white paper on one wall, tacked into the stone.

**

* * *

**

_Tal,_

_I'm sure by now you've figured out what happened. And I'm sorry that you had to figure it out that way. But I didn't want you to worry, by the time I figured it out it was too late for you to do anything. And, if I told you, you would go crazy with worry. I'm sorry, I really am._

_Take care of Raziel while I'm gone, and try not to blame yourself. Everyone makes mistakes, Tal. Even you. Goodbye._

_Hazle_

**

* * *

**

By the end of the note, I was crying uncontrollably. Confirmation of my failure, once again. Repeated, over and over. It was maddening, but I deserved it.

I could feel several pairs of eyes trained on me from the mouth of the cave, but I ignored them. Let them watch, it made no difference. That was until I felt an unfamiliar feeling well up inside me. No, not a feeling, not an emotion. It was power.

Around me, lightning bolts formed. They shot off, impacting the edges of the cave and shearing off chunks. Flames began to boil at my feet, and my fur froze solid. My eyes began to glow a very vibrant purple, completely shifting from the natural red.

I heard a stampede as the assembled crowd began to flee. Either something very good or very bad was about to happen, I could feel it. A portion of my power I had never realised I had. Something far more dangerous than brute force.

A single tear dropped off my muzzle, and stopped in mid air. Shining like a monument, a gold statue, a realization. I could see thousands of colours through it, every colour known to man, and more. The colours were so bright, so inviting.

This would do nicely.

**

* * *

**

They held a funeral, although it was an awkward affair. I attended, along with almost everyone who had gone to the academy at the same time as her and I. I could see Spine and Instructor Leafeon in the crowd, along with a host of others.

I stayed away from most of the other people present, conscious of the fact that my power was still out of my control. One wrong comment and everyone would be having a funeral. Not exactly the best way to come back home.

Spine, as it turned out, had had a very close relationship with Hazle before I came along. Even when she and I lived together the two remained close. They were childhood friends, similar to me and Ritch.

That thought caused an epiphany. How did I get a childlike physique after my escape from _Infinus_? From what I could remember, I had been at least as old as I was officially now. What other abilities did I have?

I pushed that thought from my mind. No use dwelling on it now. I would ponder after the funeral.

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Instructor Leafeon approaching me. I had to stop calling him that, he wasn't my instructor anymore. He had a grim expression.

"Tal, I'm sorry for your loss." I shrugged the comment off, turning away. Unfortunately, he was persistent. "But we need your help. And you know it." I growled, warningly. He was going into bad territory.

"You know," I said, turning to him. "I don't even know your name. Why should I take orders from you?" He flinched at the comment, looking away. "My name is Cassial," he said, somewhat mollified by my words.

I sighed, shaking my head. "Besides, why should I help you here? What do I owe you?" His eyes narrowed, and I could feel him getting angry. "What do you owe me? We took you in when you had nowhere else to go! We trained you, fed you, and housed you for years!"

The moment he finished speaking, I started to laugh. An almost maniacal laugh. "No-nowhere else to go?" I ripped a chunk of rock out of the rock pile beside me. I dropped it, and it floated in midair at head level.

"I can build houses with a thought," Several rocks floated over to join the first. "And I can crush them with a thought." The rocks crumbled into sand. I picked it up with telekinesis, making an intricate pattern in the air.

Glancing around, I located a sharp rock. Using it, I cut myself in several places. The wounds healed over in less than a second, leaving no scars. "And I cannot die!" He looked absolutely horrified, backing away slowly. "A-and," I was stuttering with just how much I was laughing. "And t-that doesn't e-e-even s-scratch t-the s-surface of w-what I can d-do!"

He backed off, walking away. My laughter faded, thankfully unnoticed by the crowd assembled not to far from me. One person seemed to notice, however.

"Tal, do you think laughter is appropriate at a time like this?" Null managed to spit out, almost laughing herself. I had let her in on my plan just after she arrived. Teleporters can work wonders, apparently.

She was the only one I had deemed close enough to reveal my full plan to, while Ethan and Silver got an inkling of what was to come. The plan was a long shot, but it was the only way to get Hazle back.

She cocked her head, thinking for a moment. "So, have you thought about how you're going to explain this to Raziel?" My son was smarter than most his age, already speaking with near fluency and already capable of understanding almost every concept you could throw at him. It would be difficult.

A smile lit my face, I had all the time in the world.

* * *

**Well, that's it. No more LoT, ever. I'm getting all teary eyed! But, while LoT is finished, the general story goes on. Maybe one day I'll write a continuation, maybe some one-shots. I will definately be going in depth on Tal's mysterious 'plan', so count on that project in the future. But first, I'm going to list the achievements of this story in its entirety.**

**During its three month lifespan, LoT entertained almost 680 people, acheived more than 1,000 views, and gathered people from a variety of different countries to read its exellence. I never met that 10 review goal, but I decided to be nice and post this early. Thank me for it!**

**LoT managed to achieve an average of 3512 words per chapter (not counting the Prologue or Epilogue), something even some much longer stories lack. Something that will be continued in it's spiritual predecessor, Lynx Academy. If not improved upon.**

**Remember everybody, you can always read Lynx academy to pass the time, so I want to see all my viewers over there pronto! See _you, _Yes, _you _specifically, there.**

**For the last time, this is Infinity WEAPON, signing off.**


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